Weight and Balance

and Aircraft performance

 Overview
• Attention Content
 Ever wondered why airlines only allow you a
certain poundage of baggage? Well, because if • Weight Control • Importance of Performance
they didn’t the airplane would most likely be data
overweight and not be able to take-off! • Terms and definitions
• Structure of the Atmosphere
• What • Balance, Stability and, C.G • Atmospheric Pressure
 Balancing the airplane within approved limits
 Finding out and calculating Aircraft performance • Weight and Flight Performance • Pressure Altitude
for specific conditions
• Weight and Structure • Density Altitude
• Why • Take-off Performance
 Critical to flight safety • Determining Weight and
 Operating above the maximum weight limits
Balance • Climb Performance
compromises structural integrity and affects
performance
• Maneuvering speed • Cruise Performance
 Operation with the Center of Gravity outside of • Landing Performance
approved limits can be very dangerous, adversely • Crosswind and
affecting flight performance and capabilities
Headwind charts
• Objective
 The student will learn about flight manuals,
weight and balance and aircraft performance
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 Weight Control
• The force of gravity continuously attempts to pull an aircraft down toward Earth. The force of
lift is the only force that counteracts weight and sustains an aircraft in flight. The amount of lift
produced by an airfoil is limited by the airfoil design, angle of attack (AOA), airspeed, and air
density. To assure that the lift generated is sufficient to counteract weight, loading an aircraft
beyond the manufacturer’s recommended weight must be avoided. If the weight is greater
than the lift generated, the aircraft may be incapable of flight.
• Weight control basically is referring to the management of weight in the aircraft to
achieve safe aircraft weight and C.G

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 Terms and Definitions
• Weight- the force with which gravity attracts a body toward the center of the Earth.
• Balance- Refers to the location of the C.G of an Aircraft
• Reference Datum- an imaginary vertical plane or line from which all measurements of
arm are taken.

• Arm- the horizontal distance in inches from the reference datum line to the C.G of an
item.

• Station- is a location along the airplane fuselage given in terms of the distance from the
reference datum.

• Moment- the product of the weight of an item multiplied by its arm. Moments are
expressed in pound-inches.

• Center of Gravity- the point about which an aircraft would balance if it were
possible to suspend it at that point. It is where all weight is said to be concentrated.
• Center of gravity arm- The arm obtained by adding the airplanes individual
moments and dividing the sum by the total weights
• Center of Gravity limits- the specified forward and aft points within which the C.G
must be located during flight.
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 Terms and Definitions
• Standard Empty weight- aircraft weight that consists of the airframe, engines, and all items of operating equipment
that have fixed locations and are permanently installed in the aircraft, including fixed ballast, hydraulic fluid, unusable
fuel, and full engine oil.
• Basic Empty weight- the standard empty weight plus the weight of optional and special equipment that have been
installed.
• Maximum weight- the maximum authorized weight of the aircraft and all of its equipment as specified in the TCDS for
the aircraft.
• Maximum zero fuel weight- the maximum weight, exclusive of usable fuel.
• Maximum ramp weight- the total weight of a loaded aircraft including all fuel. It is greater than the takeoff weight due
to the fuel that will be burned during the taxi and run-up operations. Ramp weight may also be referred to as taxi
weight.
• Maximum take-off weight- the maximum allowable weight for takeoff.
• Maximum Landing weight- the greatest weight that an aircraft is normally allowed to have at landing.
• Unusable Fuel- The fuel remaining after a test has been completed in accordance with governmental regulations. Or is
the quantity of fuel that cannot be safely used in flight.
• Usable fuel- is the fuel available for flight planning.
• Useful load- the weight of the pilot, copilot, passengers, baggage, usable fuel, and drainable oil. It is the basic empty
weight subtracted from the maximum allowable gross weight
• Payload- the weight of occupants, cargo, and baggage
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• Ballast- A weight installed or carried in an aircraft to move the center of gravity to a location within its allowable limits.
 Balance, Stability and, C.G
• The C.G of an aircraft greatly effects its Stability, controllability,
maneuverability and, performance for today's lesson we will be more concerned with
Stability. The primary concern in balancing an aircraft is the fore and aft location of the CG
along the longitudinal axis.
• Longitudinal unbalance: Fore Location of C.G= Nose heavy. Aft location of C.G= tail heavy
the C.G. The maximum distance we can go forward and aft with respects to our C.G
range is 35- 47.3 in the normal category, and 35- 40.5 in the utility category.
• Lateral unbalance: The lateral position of C.G is not computed in all aircraft, but the pilot
should be aware of the adverse effects it may cause due to lateral unbalance, this may
occur when there is too much fuel in one tank in comparison to the other
• Flying an aircraft that is out of balance can produce increased pilot fatigue with obvious
effects on the safety and efficiency of the flight.
• Stability
 An aircraft with a forward C.G will have a longer take-off roll, longer landing roll, higher stall
speed, easier stall recovery and decrease cruise speed.
 An aircraft with an Aft C.G will have a lower stall speed, reduced elevator authority, difficult stall
6 recovery, faster cruise speed.
 Weight and Flight Performance
• Maximum takeoff / landing weights ensure aircraft performance
• Heavier Gross Weights
 Higher takeoff speed and longer takeoff run
 Reduce rate and angle of climb
 Lower maximum altitude
 Slower cruise speed, reduced range, and increased fuel consumption
 Reduced maneuverability
 Higher stall speed
 Higher approach speed and longer landing roll
 Excessive weight on the nose / tail wheel

• Overloading Effects
 Significantly degraded climb performance, lower maximum altitude
 Overheating during climbs, added engine wear
 Overstressing the aircraft structure

• Flight performance degrades at higher weights and may not be possible if overloaded
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 Weight and Structure
• Structure failure is often a slow process
 Habitual overloading can add up over time, leading to failure
 Excessive Gs and / or cabin weight

• Categories
 Normal: -1.52 to 3.8 Gs
 Utility: -1.76 to 4.4 Gs
 Acrobatic: -3.0 to 6.0 Gs

• Always follow the manufacturer’s guidelines and placards

 Airplane as a whole, as well as specific requirements for seats, baggage compartments, cabin floors, etc.

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 Determining Weight and Balance
• We must first obtain the weight and moment of the aircraft before starting weight and balance
calculations.
• All performance numbers, graphs, and charts should all be taken from the POH specific to
the aircraft in which you are flying, Since data may differ from plane to plane.

1. List the weight of the aircraft, occupants, fuel, and baggage. Remember that aviation gas weighs
6 pounds per gallon.

2. Enter the moment for each item listed. Remember weight x arm = moment.

3. Find the total weight and total moment.

4. To determine the C.G, divide the total moment by the total weight.

5. Now we must determine if our weight and C.G are within limitations as specified in the aircrafts
POH, for our Cessna 172's refer to section 6.

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 Shifting, Adding and Removing Weight
• Whenever we add, shift or remove weight from the aircraft this affects either aircraft weight
or C.G or both

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 Structure of the Atmosphere
• Air like any other fluid, is able to flow and change its shape when subjected to pressures. It
has mass, weight, and indefinite shape.
• The atmosphere is composed of 78 percent nitrogen, 21 percent oxygen, and 1 percent other
gases, such as argon or helium.

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 Atmospheric pressure
• Air molecules have weight therefore they exert force or in other words pressure the more
molecules stacked on top of each other the more Pressure they produce and vice versa, which
is referred to as atmospheric pressure.
• This is of major concern to pilots because it is one of the basic factors in weather
changes, Helps to lift an aircraft and actuates some flight instruments.
• Pressure of the atmosphere varies with time and location
 Standard reference or standard datum plane was developed
 Standard atmosphere at sea level = 59°F/15°C and 29.92"HG or 1,013.2 mb.

• Standard lapse rate

 Temperature decreases at a rate of approximately 2°C per 1,000ft of altitude up to 36,000ft
 Pressure decreases at a rate of approximately 1"HG per 1,000ft of altitude to 10,000ft

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 Pressure altitude
• Pressure altitude: is the height above a standard datum plane , which is a theoretical level
where the weight of the atmosphere is 29.92 "Hg or 1013.2"Mb as measured by a barometer.
• Important as a basis for determining airplane performance as well as assigning flight levels to
airplanes operating at or above 18,000ft
• Can be found by
 Setting the barometric scale of the altimeter to 29.92 and reading the indicated altitude

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 Density Altitude
• Density altitude is pressure altitude corrected for nonstandard temperature.
• 4 factors that affect Density altitude
 Temperature
 Humidity
 Pressure
 Altitude

• It is basically the measurement of how dense a sample of air is.

• Very important to pilots because density altitude is essentially where the aircraft feels like it is
operating at.
• As air becomes less dense it reduces
 Power = engine takes in less air
 Thrust = Propeller is less efficient in thin air
 Lift = Thin air exerts less force on the airfoil.

• As air becomes denser is increases

 Power = engine takes in more air
 Thrust = Propeller is more efficient in thick air
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 Performance
• Used to describe the ability of an aircraft to accomplish certain things that make it useful for
certain purposes
• It will allow us determine if we are in the operating limitations of the aircraft and, if flight can be
conducted safely and efficiently.
• Climb performance
 Positive climb performance occurs when an aircraft gains potential energy
 Climb VSpeeds
 VX angle of best climb allows us to achieve greatest amount of altitude in a given horizontal distance in our
aircraft it is 63kts
 VY speed for best rate of climb allows us to a achieve greatest amount of altitude in a given amount of time in our
aircraft is it 73kts

• Range performance
 The ability of an aircraft to convert fuel energy into flying distance.
 Range involves consideration of flying distance, while endurance involves consideration of flying time.

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 Region of reverse command
• Flight in which a higher airspeed requires a lower power setting, and a lower airspeed requires
a higher power setting
• Flight in the region of normal command means that while holding a constant altitude, a higher
airspeed requires a higher power setting, and a lower airspeed requires a lower power setting.
The majority of aircraft flying is conducted in the region of normal command.

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