Hey, one can hope XP.
J-20... The New Generation Fighter III
- Thread starter siegecrossbow
- Start date
- Status
Hey, one can hope XP.
Yeah, I think I'm with you here, and the dihedral canard remark was indeed absolutely valid. In an aft mounted canard design you'd need strakes as well, I'd guess.
Strakes, like canards, do have very little influence on the airflow in straight & level flight. And close coupled canards, like on a Rafale, even produce a favourable airflow over the main wing to keep a nice, laminar flow, producing less drag.
Increasing AoA with canards or strakes, however, will make these aerodynamic surfaces produce vortices, very much like normal wingtip vortices. These will then wash over the wing creating / increasing turbulent flow, wich is actually more energized then laminar flow. This increase in energy within the airflow is what forces it to stay attached to the wing for longer (or delaying boundery layer seperation), increasing available lift production.
With it, obviously, comes the penalty of greater drag, but when you're BFMing an opponent, you just want the turn rate (or radius). Always a trade off, but modern fighters do have a lot of power to compensate
Last edited:
Very obviously the one used on YF-22.
Yeah, I think I'm with you here, and the dihedral canard remark was indeed absolutely valid. In an aft mounted canard design you'd need strakes as well, I'd guess.
Strakes, like canards, do have very little influence on the airflow in straight & level flight. And close coupled canards, like on a Rafale, even produce a favourable airflow over the main wing to keep a nice, laminar flow, producing less drag.
Increasing AoA with canards or strakes, however, will make these aerodynamic surfaces produce vortices, very much like normal wingtip vortices. These will then wash over the wing creating / increasing turbulent flow, wich is actually more energized then laminar flow. This increase in energy within the airflow is what forces it to stay attached to the wing for longer (or delaying boundery layer seperation), increasing available lift production.
With it, obviously, comes the penalty of greater drag, but when you're BFMing an opponent, you just want the turn rate (or radius). Always a trade off, but modern fighters do have a lot of power to compensate
I would imagine the high drag kills sustained maneuvers though.
True, wich is why sustained, intense dogfights are regularly desending maneuvers, trading altitude for kinetc energy.
Makes me wonder if sustained turning ability is something that is overlooked, but I suppose you go with the tactic that optimizes your advantages.
- Status