Simulation and Control of Fixed Wing Aircraft After a Major Component Loss

Abstract

The objective of this paper is to find means to control and stabilize a fixed wing aircraft after loss of a major stabilization and/or control component or a failure during the flight. The method seeks a possible trim condition for the aircraft after the loss or failure. A smooth transition from the initial trim condition to the post failure trim condition is aimed. After the incident, it is desired that the aircraft follows a defined trajectory. One way to achieve this goal is to obtain trim conditions along this trajectory and apply control inputs accordingly. Various tools are developed to reach this goal such as aircraft models and the algorithms for three and six degree of freedom trim analyses, and nonlinear flight simulation.