Good day!!!!

What do you see on the picture

AIRFRAME
ASSEMBLY AND
RIGGING

BY:MS. ARDALE P.
INFANTE
objectives
 To know the flight controls of aircraft and their assembly
 To know how to set cable tension, adjusting travel limits of flight
controls, and setting travel stops.
 to know what is fly by wires and their operation
scope
 PRIMARY FLIGHT CONTROLS
 TRIM CONTROLS
 FULLY POWERED FLYING CONTROL TRIM SYSTEM
 ACTIVE LOAD CONTROLS
 HIGH LIFT DEVICES
 LIFT DUMP AND SPEED BRAKES
 SYSTEM OPERATION
 TRAILING EDGE FLAP CONTROLS
 LEADING EDGE FLAP CONTROLS
 SPEED BRAKE/GROUND SPOILER CONTROL
 MECHANICAL & ELECTRICAL FLIGHT CONTROL SYSTEM
 YAW DAMPING
 MACH TRIM
 RUDDER LIMITING
 GUST LOCKS
 RIGGING AND BALANCING CONTROLS
Any Question?
Aircraft Rigging
 Aircraft rigging involves the adjustment and travel of
movable flight controls which are attached to aircraft
major surfaces, such as wings and vertical and
horizontal stabilizers. Ailerons are attached to the
wings, elevators are attached to the horizontal
stabilizer, and the rudder is attached to the vertical
stabilizer. Rigging involves setting cable tension,
adjusting travel limits of flight controls, and setting
travel stops.
 In addition to the flight controls, rigging is also
performed on various components to include engine
controls, flight deck controls, and retractable landing
gear component parts. Rigging also includes the
safetying of the attaching hardware using various
 1 FLYING CONTROLS
1.1 PRIMARY FLIGHT CONTROLS
 Weshall now look at how the Aircraft are equipped with
moveable aerofoil surfaces that provide control in flight.
Controls are normally divided into Primary and Secondary
controls. The primary flight controls are:

 Ailerons
 Elevators
 Rudders
 Secondary flight controls
Because of the need of aircraft to operate over
extremely wide speed ranges and weights, it is
necessary to have other secondary or auxiliary
controls.

Secondary flight controls

 Trim controls
 Lift Devices
 Trim controls
 Compensate for imbalance of the aircraft. imbalance
occur if the forces around any of the axes aircraft
are not equal. Trim system equalize these force and
ensure that the aircraft is balance for steady flight
Types of trim system
1.THS (Trimmable Horizontal Stabilizers)
2.Trim tabs
Lift devices

1. Leading edges devices

Slats
Krueger flaps

2. Flaps
3. Speed brakes
 1.1.1 AILERONS

Ailerons are primary flight controls that provide

lateral roll control of the aircraft.
They control aircraft movement about the
longitudinal axis.
Ailerons are normally mounted on the trailing
edge of the wing near to the wing tip.
 1.1.2 ELEVATORS
Elevators are primary flight controls that
control the movement of the aircraft about
the lateral axis (pitch).
 Elevators are normally attached to hinges
on the rear spar of the horizontal stabilizer
Elevator
 1.1.3 RUDDERS
 The rudder is the flight control surface that controls
aircraft movement about the vertical or normal axis.
 Rudders for small aircraft are normally single
structural units operated by a single control system.
Rudders for larger transport aircraft vary in basic
structural and operational design. They may
comprise two or more
 operationalsegments; each controlled by different
operating systems to provide a level of redundancy.
 1.1.4 SPOILERS
 control surfaces used to reduce or spoil the lift on a wing.
 Theynormally consist of multiple flat panels located on the
upper surface of the wings.
.When the spoilers are operated, the surface raises and
reduces the lift. The spoilers may be used for different
purposes.

2 Types of spoilers
• Ground spoilers
• Flight spoilers
Types of spoilers
 1.1.4.1 Flight Spoilers
 Flight Spoilers are used in flight to reduce the amount of lift. If the
pilot operates the controls left or right to roll the aircraft, the spoilers
on the down -going wing move upward to aid rolling the aircraft.
 The movement of the spoilers is in proportion to the rate of roll
required. On some aircraft, the spoilers are the primary flight control
for rolling.
 If operating only as flight spoilers, only the surfaces on one wing will
be raised at any one time. The flight spoilers are normally positioned
outboard of the ground spoilers.
Types of spoilers
1.1.4.2 Ground Spoilers
 Ground Spoilers are only used when the aircraft is on the ground.
 They operate with the flight spoilers to greatly reduce the lift on
landing.
 They also reduce the drag after landing to slow down the aircraft.
 Ground spoilers will normally be deflected to their maximum
position to give maximum drag on landing.
TRIM CONTROLS
 The majority of aircraft at some time during a flight develop a
tendency to deviate from a straight and level attitude. This may
be caused by a fuel state change, a speed change, a change in
position of the aircraft's load, or in flap and undercarriage
positions.
 The pilot can counter this tendency by continuously applying a
correcting force to the controls - an operation, which, if
maintained for any length of time, would be both fatiguing and
difficult to maintain. The tendency to deviate is therefore
corrected by making minor trim adjustments to the control
surfaces.
 Once an aircraft has been trimmed back to a 'balanced' flight
condition, no further effort is required by the pilot until further
deviation develops.
Two types of TRIM TABS
Fixed Trim Tabs
 A fixed trim tab is normally a piece of sheet metal attached to the
trailing edge of a control surface. It is adjusted on the ground by
bending to an appropriate position that give zero control forces when
in the cruise. Finding the correct position is by trial and error.

Controllable trim tabs

 A controllable trim tab is adjusted by mechanical means from the
flight deck, usually with an indication of its position being displayed
to the pilot. Most aircraft have trim on the pitch control and more
advanced aircraft have trim on all three axes. Whilst the controls in
the cockpit are by lever, switch etc., the actuation can be by
mechanical, electrical or hydraulic means.
Types of controllable trim tabs

1. Servo tabs
 Sometimes referred to as the flight tabs, the servo tabs are used
primarily on large control surfaces, often found on larger, older aircraft.
This tab is operated directly by the primary controls of the aircraft. In
response to the pilot's input, only the tab moves. The force of the airflow
on the servo tab then moves the primary control surface. This tab is
used to reduce the effort required to move the controls on a large
aircraft.
2.Balance tab
 A balance tab is linked to the aircraft in such a manner that a
movement of the main control surface will give an opposite movement
to the tab. Thus the balance tab will help in moving the main surface,
therefore reducing the effort required. This type of tab will normally be
found fitted to aircraft where the controls are found to be rather heavy
during initial flight-testing.
Types of controllable trim tabs
3. ANTI-BALANCE TABS
 These anti-balance tabs operate in the same way, mechanically,
as balance tabs. The tab itself is connected to the operating
mechanism so that it operates in the reverse way to the balance
tab.
4. Spring tabs
 The purpose of the spring tab is to provide a boost, thereby aiding the
movement of a control surface. Although similar to servo tabs, spring
tabs are progressive in their operation so that there is little assistance at
slow speeds but much assistance at high speeds.
FULLY POWERED FLYING CONTROL
TRIM SYSTEM
 As fully powered flying controls are irreversible, i.e. all loads
(reactions) are fed via mountings to structure; trim tabs would be
ineffective.
 To overcome this, electric trim struts or actuators are used within
the input system. These actuators commonly reposition the "null"
position of a self-centring spring device to hold the control-input
system in a new neutral position. Thus the main control surface
will be held deflected and the aircraft trimmed.
TAILPLANE TRIM SYSTEM

 For trimming the aircraft longitudinally (about the lateral axis)

the elevators are not trimmed. Instead the angle of incidence of
the whole tailplane is altered. Raising the leading edge of the
tailplane will increase lift over the tailplane, which imparts a
nose-down attitude to the aircraft or vice versa.
 This is done by mounting the forward end of the tailplane on a
screw jack. Depending on the system the screw jack is rotated by
two hydraulic or electric motors via a gearbox. Movement is
induced by a lever in the flight deck, which operates solenoid
selector valves or an electric control circuit to operate the
motors. Over-travel is prevented by micro-switch.
Variable Incidence Tailplane Trim System

 The tail-plane is
pivoted at the rear of
the centre section
torsion box and
attached to an actuator
forward of the centre
section. Operation of
the actuator raises or
lowers the leading
edge of the tail-plane,
altering the incidence
angle
ACTIVE LOAD CONTROL
 This system is a relatively new approach to civil aviation, although it
has been in use for some time in military aircraft. It is a complex
system that senses disturbances in the air that may cause both
discomforts to passengers and crew, whilst causing extra
unnecessary loading on the airframe.
 The gusts that are about to hit the aircraft are sensed either by a
tiny pair of vanes on either side of the nose or by accelerometers
mounted inside the nose of the aircraft. These instantly send a
signal, 'bump coming', to the flight control computers, which
instantly send a correcting signal to the elevators that counter the
bump and give a smoother ride.
 The whole system requires the quick reactions of both the
computers and the hydraulic jacks to be successful. If the aircraft
senses a downdraft, the computers instantly signal just the correct
amount of 'up elevator' to counteract the disturbance and leave the
aircraft to fly smoothly on.
ACTIVE CONTROL TECHNOLOGY
 Active Control Technology (ACT) can be defined as “the use of a
multivariable automatic flight control system to improve the
maneuverability, dynamic flight characteristics and the structural
dynamic properties of an aircraft by simultaneously driving an
appropriate number of control surfaces and auxiliary force.”

 In essence ACT is the use of technology to make an aircraft and

its control surfaces operate in an unconventional manner to
effect high maneuverability or to reduce airframe stress.

 ACT is nothing new, it has been used on aircraft for many

decades but it has increased in usage with the advent of flight
control computers and fly-by-wire systems
Additional flight controls to make
aircraft more agile
Numerous control surfaces, auxiliary force and moment generators
can be added to make the aircraft operate unconventionally. Fighter
aircraft and some executive jets may have a number of such devices
fitted to make them more agile. These include:
  Foreplanes which can only move together to give pitch control.

  Canards, these differ from foreplanes as they can also move

independently giving more response in roll.
  Flaperons which are control surfaces that acts as flaps and/or ailerons
depending on the pilot‟s selection. They have the ability to move both up
and down independently for roll control, but can also move simultaneously
for take off and landing.
  Thrust vectoring, mainly used on combat aircraft, but the advantages
gained with short take off and landing will mean that some form of
vectoring system will be developed for commercial aircraft in the future.
Canards and foreplanes
flaperon
ADVANTAGES OF ACTIVE
CONTROL TECHNOLOGY
The employment of Active Control Technology presents
numerous advantages both for civil and military aircraft, namely:
  The aircraft is more stable in flight
  The aircraft are highly agile (military only)
  A more comfortable flight for passengers
  Reduced fatigue on the aircraft, therefore lighter construction can be
utilized
  gives better fuel consumption
  Varying lift profiles means wings can be more streamlined (less drag)
  It is impossible for the aircraft to be flown beyond its design
limitations – under normal conditions!
ADVANTAGES OF ACTIVE
CONTROL TECHNOLOGY
Conventional aircraft have four forces providing control and
movement
  Rolling moment
  Pitching moment
  Yawing moment
  Thrust (Drag modulation

The use of ACT can provide two more additional forces of

control and movement:
  Direct lift force
  Direct side force
Two more additional forces of control
and movement of ACT
DIRECT LIFT FORCE
 In order to change altitude a pilot must pitch the nose of the aircraft
up, which may cause him to lose sight of his destination (the runway).
Using ACT, the pilot can change altitude by causing the fore planes
and flaperons to operate together increasing the lift on the front and
rear of the aircraft simultaneously. This is known as the direct lift force
DIRECT SIDE FORCE
 The pilot, conventionally, must roll the aircraft to change its flight
path in a sideways plane. ACT allows the aircraft to side step during
normal flight by deploying the rudder and the canards together to pull
the nose and tail of the aircraft across in the same direction. This is
known as the direct side force.
 HIGH LIFT DEVICES
FLAPS
 These devices have two primary aims, to provide extra lift during
take-off and as well as high drag during landing.
 Flaps are fitted to most aircraft and are usually one of the types
shown, together with the maximum increases of lift over the 'clean'
configuration. As the complexity increases to improve performance,
there is a proportional increase in weight, maintenance and cost
 Whilst the term 'flaps' is used, it is taken as meaning trailing edge
flaps, and the term 'leading edge flaps 'refers to those fitted to the
leading edges of the wings of most large aircraft.
 Types of
Flap System
Flaps are fitted to most
aircraft and are usually one of
the types shown, together
with the maximum increases
of lift over the 'clean'
configuration. As the
complexity increases to
improve performance, there
is a proportional increase in
weight, maintenance and
cost.
 Flaps operation
 The methods of operation of flaps, are numerous. They can vary from
simple, mechanical push rods or cables actuated, via a lever in the
cockpit, by the pilot,to complicated, multiple flaps that are electrically
selected on the flight deck and hydraulically or electrically powered.
Most flap systems have a number of positions, which can be selected at
various times. As an example, five positions could be as follows;
 0 degree - flaps up
 25 degree - landing, first position
 8 degree - take-off, first position
 40 degree - landing, second position
 15 degree - take-off, second position
Flap Mechanism
 Leading edges device
 Other high lift devices can be found on the leading edges of the wings
and include slats, drooped leading edges and Krueger flaps. All of
these devices are aimed at smoothing the airflow over the leading
edges of the wings when they are at a high angle of attack, thereby
maintaining, or increasing lift when the wing would normally be
stalled.

1. SLATS
 Slats are separate small aerofoils, which can be fixed or retractable.
Their purpose is to control the air passing over the top of the wing at
slow speeds. On larger aircraft, the retractable slats have their
extension interconnected with the trailing edge flaps.
 Leading and Trailing Edge Flap Settings

Leading and Trailing Edge Flap Settings

Leading edges device

 DROOPED LEADING EDGES

 Drooped leading edges are a different design, but are
aiming at the same effect, that of smoothing the air over
the top of the wing. They operate in much the same way as
most high lift devices, by screw jack operation with the
motive power for the jacks coming from the hydraulic
system.
Krueger (left) and Drooped (right) Leading
 LIFT DUMP AND SPEED BRAKES
LIFT DUMPERS
 These devices are used to spoil lift from the wing after touchdown. This ensures that
the aircraft's weight is fully on its landing gear, which enables the brakes to work at
100% for the full landing run..

 Lift dumpers are nearly always flat, rectangular panels, hinged at their leading edge
and powered by hydraulics. They can usually be found on the top of the wing, and
located about the maximum thickness, where their deployment would destroy the
maximum lift from the wing.

 To ensure that they deploy at the correct time and also without the need for the
pilot to select them, at a very busy time, there is a simple system to deploy them
automatically. A set of switches are fitted to the landing gear which 'make' and
indicate weight-on-wheels to several systems, once the aircraft is completely on
the ground. By giving the pilot a "lift dumper arming" button, he can arm the
system, in flight, and know that it will deploy the lift dumpers at the correct time
 SPEED BRAKES
The use of speed brakes is similar regardless of the aircraft type. If the
aircraft is a sailplane it is so streamlined that it requires high drag when
descending and landing in unprepared fields. A large 400 seat airliner
needs to be able to follow Air Traffic Control instructions to descend and
maintain certain speeds
 All types of speed brake use a variation of the same principle, to put
panels of varying shapes into the airflow, to increase the drag.

 Some are able to modulate, (vary the amount of drag to suit the
situation), whilst others are just 'IN' or 'OUT'. Some airliners use the
same surfaces on the top of the wing to carry out more than one
operation, such as speed brakes when in flight and needing drag; roll
control to augment (or replace) ailerons; or as lift dumpers to be used
after landing.
SYSTEM OPERATION
POWERED FLIGHT CONTROL UNIT(P.F.C.U’S)
 In large modern aircraft that fly at high speeds, the air loads on
the flying control surfaces far exceed the ability of the pilot to
move them manually. To overcome this problem hydraulic
pressure is used to move the control surfaces, a POWERED
FLYING CONTROL UNIT or BOOSTER being used to convert
hydraulic pressure into a force exerted on the control surface.

 To control the P.F.C.U. a servo valve (control valve) is mounted on

the jack. The servo valve, which is connected to the pilot's controls
by a system of cables and/or pushrods, called the input system,
directs fluid to either side of the jack piston and directs the fluid
from the other side to return. This flow of fluid will displace the jack
ram and as this is connected to the control surface via an output
system of pushrods or cables, the control surface is moved.
REDUNDANCY OF HYDRAULIC SUPPLIES
 Hydraulically powered flight control units
usually derive their hydraulic power from the
aircraft hydraulic system. If a PFCU obtained
hydraulic power from only one hydraulic
supply, a failure of that hydraulic supply due
to an engine shut down, loss of fluid due to a
leak, or failure of a hydraulic pump. The result
would be loss of powered control of the
aircraft. The probability of hydraulic failure is
too great to allow a system to rely on one
hydraulic supply, so redundancy must be
introduced into the flight control system.