The design, manufacture and testing of a 480 cubic metre helium-filled airship, or dirigible balloon, intended for flight above tropical rain forest canopy is outlined. The requirements for the airship and the preliminary sizing method are set-out. Details of the final design and flight test results are included, as well as suggestions concerning future work. Particular attention is paid to the issue of accurate station-keeping and operation close to the canopy with winds present. It is concluded that the development of a truly useful aerial platform for canopy biological studies requires further research in aerodynamics, dynamic simulation and ultra-quiet propulsion systems.

In a gas turbine, ingestion of hot gas into the high-pressure turbine disc cavities could cause metal overheat. To prevent this, cool air is taken from the compressor and ejected through the cavities. However, this sealing flow also reduces the overall efficiency, and a compromise has to be found between the level of ingestion tolerated and the losses. Recent advances made in applying Computational Fluid Dynamics to such configurations are presented, with the aim of better understanding the physical phenomena and providing reliable design tools. First, results showing the pumping effect of the rotating disc are presented, including the influence of flow instabilities observed in both computational and experimental results. Second, the influence of the main annulus pressure asymmetries are analysed on a simplified representation of an available experiment, showing the combined influence of asymmetries generated by vanes and struts. Finally, a rim seal geometry representative of aero-engine design is studied in comparison to experiment, exhibiting the coupled influence of the cavity instabilities and annulus asymmetries.

In this paper the development and flight testing of flapping-wing propelled, radio-controlled micro air vehicles are described. The unconventional vehicles consist of a low aspect ratio fixed-wing with a trailing pair of higher aspect ratio flapping wings which flap in counterphase. The symmetric flapping-wing pair provides a mechanically and aerodynamically balanced platform, increases efficiency by emulating flight in ground effect, and suppresses stall over the main wing by entraining flow. The models weigh as little as 11g, with a 23cm span and 18cm length and will fly for about 20 minutes on a rechargeable battery. Stable flight at speeds between 2 and 5ms–1 has been demonstrated, and the models are essentially stall-proof while under power. The static-thrust figure of merit for the device is 60% higher than propellers with a similar scale and disk loading.

The analytical capacity models of an airport with two runways system are developed in this paper and the theoretical capacity curves yielded by this model are analysed. The statistic airport capacity estimation methodology based on historical data is introduced as well. Both analytical models and statistic strategy are applied to estimate the capacity of the two runways system of a typical airport. Two sets of airport capacity curves obtained in different ways are compared and analysed. The result of the analysis indicates that the mathematical model works effectively in a fairly accurate way in the estimation of airport capacity.

The aerodynamic performances of a non-slender 50° delta wing with various leading-edge bevels were measured in a low speed wind tunnel. It is found that the delta wing with leading-edge bevelled leeward can improve the maximum lift coefficient and maximum lift to drag ratio, and the stall angle of the wing is also delayed. In comparison with the blunt leading-edge wing, the increment of maximum lift to drag ratio is 200%, 98% and 100% for the wings with relative thickness t/c = 2%, t/c = 6.7% and t/c = 10%, respectively.

In this second Aeronautical Journal paper providing a technical appraisal of the Wright brothers’ achievements, the authors use modelling and simulation and associated flight dynamics analysis to present the development of the first practical aeroplane. The aircraft in question, the Wright Flyer III, was deemed fit for service by the Wrights in October 1905, and had evolved significantly from the first powered aircraft of 17 December 1903. The appraisal tries to shed light on many of the flight handling problems that the Wright brothers faced during this, their third phase of aeronautical endeavour, in 1904 and 1905. They retained their unstable configuration born in the 1901 and 1902 gliders, gradually refining the performance and handling until they considered the aircraft was ready for market. Their process of refinement has been reconstructed in simulation within the Liverpool Wright project, highlighting the many important developments during a period when Wilbur and Orville’s own documentation was limited. Apart from their engineering excellence, the Wright brothers are to be acknowledged for their perseverance and resolve in overcoming setbacks, for their ability to innovate and to recover and learn from their mistakes. In many ways the Wright brothers represent a model for the modern aeronautical engineer, and it is hoped that their legacy will be better preserved through the documentation of this project.