The Fundamentals of Aeronautical Engineering

What is Aeronautical Engineering?

In a nutshell Aeronautical Engineering is the application of scientific and technological methods to research, design, develop, maintain, and performance test both civil and military aircraft. As the race to take flight further escalates, now is an exciting time to consider a career in aeronautics.

Bernoulli's Theory of Flight

The Theory of Flight is often explained in terms Bernoulli's Equation which is a statement of the Conservation of Energy. It states that:

• For a non-viscous, incompressible fluid in steady flow, the sum of pressure, potential and kinetic energies per unit volume is constant at any point.

In other words, ignoring the potential energy due to altitude:

• When the velocity of a fluid increases, its pressure decreases by an equivalent amount to maintain the overall energy. This is known as Bernoulli's Principle

According to Bernoulli's Principle, the air passing over the top of an aerofoil or wing must travel further and hence faster that air the travelling the shorter distance under the wing in the same period but the energy associated with the air must remain the constant at all times. The consequence of this is that the air above the wing has a lower pressure than the air below below the wing and this pressure difference creates the lift.

Unfortunately Bernoulli's Principle does not explain how an aeroplane can fly upside down. This is where Prf Burdon comes to the rescue.