What is wing reference area?

An aircraft’s reference wing area is defined as the planform area of an aircraft’s wing (usually including the area of the wing through the fuselage). The reference wing area is defined as the plan area of the wing. Wing area is a fundamental concept in the design and performance modelling of an aircraft.

How do you find the wetted area of a wing?

The wetted area is estimated by multiplying the true view exposed as plan form area (Sexposed) times a factor based upon the wing or tail thickness ratio. If a wing or tail were papperthin, the wetted area would be exactly twice the true plan form area (i.e. top and bottom).

What is planform shape?

In aviation, a planform is the shape and layout of an airplane’s wing. Of all the myriad planforms used, they can typically be grouped into those used for low-speed flight, found on general aviation aircraft, and those used for high-speed flight, found on many military aircraft and airliners.

Which wing planform is most efficient?

elliptical planform
An elliptical planform is the most efficient aerodynamic shape for an untwisted wing, leading to the lowest amount of induced drag.

What is planform area?

The planform area is the area of the wing as viewed from above the wing, looking along the “lift” direction. It is a flat plane, and is NOT the total surface area (top and bottom) of the entire wing, although it is almost half that number for most wings.

What is the reference area?

The reference area A is typically the cross-sectional or frontal area of the object (pR2 for a sphere), but may also be the surface area (wetted area) or other representative area describing the object.

What is a Planform on a plane?

The shape of the wing, when viewed from above looking down onto the wing, is called a planform. In this figure, the planform is a rectangle. For a rectangular wing, the chord length at every location along the span is the same. For most other planforms, the chord length varies along the span.

What airfoil did the Spitfire use?

These laminar-flow airfoils were the Supermarine 371-I used at the root and the 371-II used at the tip. Supermarine estimated that the new wing could give an increase in speed of 55 mph (89 km/h) over the Spitfire Mk 21. The new wing was initially fitted to a Spitfire Mk XIV.

Do bigger wings make more lift?

Yes. Wings that can cause a bigger difference in air pressure from the top to the bottom of the wing will create more lift. For example, a wing that has relatively little curve to it will not create much lift. However, a wing with a large curve on the top will create more lift.