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3.3. SHAPING THE WINGS 31 Making a Wing Movable Figure 3.26: The root and tip airfoils Just like in the real world, wings in X-Plane do not have to be static. They can be swept forward or back, they can be angled up or down, and they can even be retracted. Figure 3.27: The parameters to make a wing movable in the Airfoils dialog box In the Airfoils dialog box (launched from the Expert menu), each wing has a group of four checkboxes, as seen in Figure 3.27. Setting Variable Wing Sweep Checking the first box in Figure 3.27, labeled “variable sweep,” will allow you to set the maximum wing sweep in degrees. Positive values here will allow the wing to angle further behind the reference point, while negative values will allow it to angle forward of the reference point. This variable sweep is illustrated in Figure 3.28. Wing sweep is measured in degrees of sweep along the 25% chord (that is, along the line 25% of the way behind the leading edge of the wing). Note that you set the maximum sweep here; the minimum sweep is set as the default wing sweep, found in the Wings dialog box (opened from the Standard menu). Variable wing sweep is useful in aircraft that approach or exceed the speed of sound, but which must also perform well at low speeds. As your speed increases toward Mach 1, a wing that meets
32 3. SHAPING THE BODY OF AN AIRCRAFT the air head-on generates more and more drag. Variable sweep wings are most popular in military aircraft (like the B-1 Lancer and the F-14 Tomcat). To use a variable sweep in X-Plane, you can add a sweep control to the instrument panel. Alternatively, you could assign a button or key to the “vector sweep aft” and “vector sweep forward” controls in the Joystick and Equipment dialog box. Figure 3.28: Variable wing sweep illustrated (thanks to Wikimedia Commons user Steelpillow for the image) Setting Variable Wing Dihedral Checking the box labeled “variable dihedral” in the Airfoils dialog box (seen in Figure 3.27) will allow you to change the angle of the wing above or below the horizontal plane in flight. This is illustrated in Figure 3.29. Entering a positive value here corresponds to an angle upward from horizontal (like the wings in Figure 3.29). Likewise, entering a negative value will correspond to a downward angle. A relatively high dihedral angle will increase the “dihedral effect” on the wings—that is, the wings’ tendency to stabilize and level the aircraft in a roll. Figure 3.29: Wing dihedral, the upward angle of the wings, illustrated (thanks to Wikimedia Commons user Steelpillow for the image) Setting Variable Wing Incidence Checking the box labeled “variable incidence” in the Airfoils dialog box (seen in Figure 3.27) will allow you to change the wing’s angle of attack in flight. This angle, known as the angle of incidence, is illustrated in Figure 3.30. Enter the maximum incidence here, in degrees. Positive values correspond to an upward angle of the wing when viewing the aircraft from the side, while negative values correspond to a downward angle.
Page 1 and 2: U L T R A -R E A L IS T IC F L IG H
Page 3 and 4: CONTENTS iii The Body Data Box . .
Page 5 and 6: CONTENTS v 9 Performing a Test Flig
Page 7 and 8: 1. About This Manual (this page) 2.
Page 9 and 10: 2 1. INTRODUCTION TO PLANE MAKER 1.
Page 11 and 12: 4 2. THE PLANE MAKER INTERFACE 2.3
Page 13 and 14: 6 2. THE PLANE MAKER INTERFACE Spec
Page 15 and 16: 8 2. THE PLANE MAKER INTERFACE Figu
Page 17 and 18: 10 3. SHAPING THE BODY OF AN AIRCRA
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Page 53 and 54: 4 Working with the Aircraft’s Sys
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84 7. MODELING ADDITIONAL FEATURES
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86 7. MODELING ADDITIONAL FEATURES
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88 8. MODIFYING THE APPEARANCE OF A
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9 Performing a Test Flight At some
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Glossary of Terms .acf file - an ai
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98 GLOSSARY OF TERMS Figure 4: An A
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