Partitioning of flight data for aerodynamic modeling of aircraft at high angles of attack

It is sometimes necessary to determine aerodynamic model structure and estimate associated stability and control derivatives for airplanes from flight data that cover a large range of angle of attack or sideslip. One method of dealing with that problem is through data partitioning. The main purpose of this paper is to provide an explanation of a data partitioning procedure and its application and to discuss both the power and limitations of that procedure for the analysis of large maneuvers of aircraft. The partitioning methodology is shown to provide estimates for coefficients of those regressors that are well excited in the aircraft motion. In particular, primary lateral stability and damping derivatives are identified throughout the maneuver ranges.