Lift and Drag Measurements of a Gull-Wing Configuration Aircraft

The tube-and-wing aircraft configuration has remained unchanged since the start of commercial aviation. The state of minimum induced drag is comprised of an elliptically loaded wing, which has a constant downwash profile. Interrupting this wing with a central, payload-carrying body costs downwash, but is essential in fulfilling practical flight objectives. Initial drag and lift estimates, streamwise velocity profiles, as well as sectional and quasi-3D parasite drag estimates have been produced using force balance and ParticleImaging-Velocimetry (PIV) measurement techniques on a novel aircraft configuration, called the Gull-Wing Configuration. The results here indicate it is possible to restore an estimated 59% of the lost downwash while incurring no measurable increase in drag because of induced drag reductions, despite increases in parasite drag.