Posted on February 4, 2021 Robert Jones Aerospace
As the generation of lift is paramount to the ability of an aircraft to fly, it can seem counteractive to mitigate it. Despite this, destroying lift can be very useful in a variety of situations to benefit the pilot and their control over the aircraft. To reduce lift in a controlled way, pilots rely on wing spoiler devices. Coming in the form of plates placed on the top surface of wings, such devices can be extended into the airflow to create a stall.
During a standard flight operation, one of the most useful times that an end wing spoiler can be used is during the landing phase. As an aircraft begins its descent, it needs to find a way to efficiently approach the ground without building up dangerous amounts of speed. As an aircraft glider begins an approach descent, spoilers may be deployed in order to increase drag. As a result, the nose of the aircraft glider may be pointed downwards for descension without increasing airspeed. The same can be seen with airliners, where spoilers can assist the descent process in a similar manner. Additionally, such wing spoiler devices can also aid flight during icy conditions as they allow the aircraft to travel slower while keeping engine RPM high for the means of providing hot bleed air for anti-icing.
Alongside helping descent maneuvers, spoilers may also be used alongside aircraft ailerons while banking. When using a standard aircraft aileron device, banking can prove difficult when there is high speed airflow over wings. This is due to the fact that the ailerons can generate large amounts of force, possibly causing the aircraft to bank in an unintended direction. With a device known as a spoileron, adverse yaw can be mitigated during banking maneuvers to turn with ease.
As a last major benefit provided by aircraft spoilers, reduced lift and increased drag can assist pilots in safely stopping the vehicle upon touchdown on a runway. When an airliner lands, lift will often keep weight off the landing gear and thus braking will not be very effective. To avoid this, ground spoilers are automatically deployed upon the moment the wheels make touchdown, causing the full weight of the aircraft to be placed on the wheels. Additionally, form drag is produced upon deployment, causing the airliner to stop at a much quicker rate.
Depending on the aircraft and its particular needs, two main spoiler designs may be implemented. Consisting of the vertical and hinged spoiler, each provides its own characteristics that may benefit certain aircraft. With the vertical spoiler, aircraft gliders and smaller models can disrupt the airflow passing over the aft section of the wing. As such end wing spoiler devices are more effective the further they are deployed, they are not optimal for roll control. Due to their construction and deployment, such spoiler devices also may not be implemented on thinner wings as well.
The hinged spoiler surface is commonly seen on many airliners, and they excel at small deflections. Due to this, their control inputs can be more responsive, benefiting airliners and similar aircraft. Additionally, hinged spoilers can be larger in size when placed on airliner wings. When hinged spoilers are deployed, they raise up from the wing in a similar fashion to split-flaps, albeit upside down.
With wing spoiler devices installed on an aircraft, descending, banking, and stopping procedures can all be conducted with ease. At ASAP 360 Unlimited, we offer competitive pricing and rapid lead-times on all the aircraft parts we carry. If you find particular aviation parts from our catalogs that you wish to procure, begin the process today by submitting an Instant RFQ form through our website. Once received, our team members will respond to you with a personalized quote in just 15 minutes or less.
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