Experimental investigation of the flow field topology for several cargo drop configurations

Abstract

Various cargo drop configurations have been analyzed using stereoscopic Particle Image Velocimetry (SPIV). The PIV measurement planes were located at several positions in the wake of a generic transport aircraft model with an open ramp. The stream- and spanwise positioning of the wind tunnel model was facilitated by means of positioning mechanism of the wind tunnel facility. The first measured configuration consisted of only the wake of the transport aircraft. The cargo configurations consisted of a model of a cargo container, including a rigid parachute and a cargo with an airdrop support platform. A fixed haltering mechanism was used to keep the cargo at a fixed position behind the wind tunnel model for the PIV measurements. The resulting velocity fields (obtained at several chord wise positions) are used to discuss the flow topologies for these airdrop configurations.