Designer's Notebook

Last month we began our discussion of the structural layout of the wing with a look at externally braced wings. We now turn our...

As we saw last month, the designer has two fundamental choices of wing structural architecture: cantilever or externally braced. In a cantilever layout all...

Last month we started our discussion of wing design with a look at the vertical placement of the wing on the fuselage (high versus...

At this point in the design process, we have gotten the airplane sized, balanced, and after six months of consideration gotten the landing gear...

Last month, I ran out of space before getting to the end of our discussion of landing gear. This month, we conclude the series...

For the past few editions of Wind Tunnel, we’ve been exploring the factors that drive the configuration and placement of landing gear. Last month...

Last month we looked at how the static stability of the airplane when it is sitting at rest on its landing gear affects the...

Last month we took a look at the basic characteristics of the two most common landing gear configurations: tricycle and taildragger. We will now...

As we started to discuss last month, the landing gear is a major component of the airplane that affects the design in significant ways....

It’s time to turn our attention to a major component of the airplane—the landing gear.