CEE 5614 and CEE 4674 Aircraft Classifications Dr. Antonio A. Trani Professor Civil and Environmental Engineering Spring 2013 1
Material Presented The aircraft and the airport Aircraft classifications Aircraft characteristics and their relation to airport planning New large capacity aircraft (NLA) impacts 2
Relevance of Aircraft Characteristics Aircraft classifications are useful in airport engineering work (including terminal gate sizing, apron and taxiway planning, etc.) and in air traffic analyses Most of the airport design standards are related to aircraft size (i.e., wingspan, aircraft length, aircraft wheelbase, aircraft seating capacity, etc.) Airport fleet compositions vary over time and thus is imperative that we learn how to forecast expected vehicle sizes over long periods of time The Next Generation (NextGen) air transportation system will cater to a more diverse pool of aircraft 3
Airport Engineering and Aircraft Characteristics Imperative to know the performance aspects of the aircraft on the ground (low taxiing speeds) as well as on takeoff and landing Boeing 757-200 winglets rotates at LAX runway 25R (A.A. Trani) 4
Geometric Design Classification (ICAO) 5
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Aircraft Design Group (ADG) Classification Design Group Tail Height (Feet) Wingspan (feet) I <20 <49 II 20 to <30 49 to < 79 III 30 to <45 79 to < 118 IV 45 to < 60 118 to < 171 V 60 to < 66 171 to < 214 Representative Aircraft Types Cessna 172, Beech 36, Cessna 421, Learjet 35 Beech B300, Cessna 550 Falcon 50, Challenger 605 Boeing 737, Airbus A320 CRJ-900, EMB-190 Boeing 767, Boeing 757, Airbus A300, Douglas DC-10 Boeing 747, Airbus A340, Boeing 777 VI 66 to <80 214 to < 262 Airbus A380, Antonov 124* * The Antonov 225 has a wingspan of 290 feet (in a class by itself). Only one aircraft produced. 6
FAA Aircraft Approach Speed Classification (AAC) 7
Source to Find Aircraft Approach Speed and Aircraft Mass (weight) Data FAA Advisory Circular AC/150 5300-13 Airport Design (Appendix 1) 8
Presentation of Aircraft Characteristics in Appendix 1 of AC 150/5300-13 Aircraft Approach Class Aircraft Design Group Taxiway Design Group 9
Taxiway Design Group (TDG) Previous FAA guidance considered tail height and wingspan as design factors for geometric design New guidance (Sep. 2012) Dimensions of the aircraft undercarriage are also important in geometric design New guidance for taxiway design considers Main gear Width (MGW) and Cockpit to Main gear Dimensions (CMG) 10
FAA AC 150/5300-13 Appendix 1 source: FAA AC 150/5300-13 11
FAA AC 150/5300-13 Appendix 1 source: FAA AC 150/5300-13 12
Consideration About CMG Distance vs Wheelbase Distance FAA specifies: Cockpit to Main Gear (CMG) dimension will be used instead of the aircraft wheelbase for aircraft where the cockpit is located forward of the nose gear (typically applies to commercial aircraft) For aircraft with the cockpit located aft of the nose gear, use the wheelbase instead of CMG to determine the Taxiway Design Group (TDG) See figures in the previous slides 13
Examples - Small Aircraft Most general aviation aircraft (called GA) typically have the nose gear located in front of the cockpit (use the wheelbase distance for design) Cirrus SR-20 4-seat single engine piston power aircraft wheelbase Cessna Citation Excel 560XL Twin turbofan powered aircraft wheelbase 14
Examples - Commercial Aircraft Most commercial aircraft have the cockpit located ahead of the nose gear (use CMG distance) Boeing 737-300. Twin-engine turbofan powered, commercial aircraft Cockpit to Main Gear Distance (CMG) 15
Special Landing Gear Configurations Some aircraft have special landing gear configurations Piper J-3 Cub 2-seat single engine piston power aircraft Tail Dragger Configuration BAC Concorde - Supersonic Transport (very long CMG distance) 16
Taxiway Design Group Definitions source: FAA AC 150/5300-13 17
Aircraft Characteristic Databases FAA site http://www.faa.gov/airports/engineering/aircraft_char_database/ Excel file with aircraft data (http://128.173.204.63/courses/ cee4674/cee4674_pub/aircraft_char_122009.xls) or at http://www.faa.gov/airports/engineering/ aircraft_char_database/) Eurocontrol site http://elearning.ians.lu/aircraftperformance/ 18
Available at: Sample Excel Database of Aircraft Characteristics Excel file with aircraft data (http://128.173.204.63/courses/ cee4674/cee4674_pub/aircraft_char_122009.xls) or at http://www.faa.gov/airports/engineering/aircraft_char_database/) ARC = Airport Reference Code combines AAC and ADG 19
Example Problem # 1 An airport is to be designed to accommodate the Boeing 757-300 aircraft. Determine the airport reference code and the taxiway design group to be used. Solution: Look at the FAA aircraft database: Approach speed is 142 knots (AAC = D) and Wingspan is 124.8 feet and tail height 44.5 feet (thus group IV) 20
Picture the Aircraft in Question (Sanity Check) Boeing 757-300 taking off at Punta Cana international Airport (A. Trani) Aircraft pictures are available at: http://www.airliners.net 21
Example Problem # 1 Boeing 757-300 : Approach speed is 142 knots (AAC = D) and Wingspan is 124.8 feet and tail height 44.5 feet (belongs to group IV) Boeing 757-300 Belongs to Group IV Reason: tail height falls into III group, wingspan belongs to group IV Use the most critical 22
Example Problem # 1 Boeing 757-300 Has a wheelbase of 73.3 feet, a Main Gear Width of 28.2 feet (8.6 meters) and a Cockpit to Main Gear distance of 85.3 feet (26 m) Boeing 757-300 Belongs to Taxiway Design Group Group (TDG) 5 23
Example Problem # 1 Boeing 757-300 Has a wheelbase of 73.3 feet, a Main Gear Width of 28.2 feet (8.6 meters) and a Cockpit to Main Gear distance of 85.3 feet (26 m) TDG -5 Boeing 757-300 Belongs to Taxiway Design Group Group (TDG) 5 24
Boeing 757-200/300 Document for Airport Design Aircraft Manufacturer documents provide another source of aircraft data Figure 2.2.2 in Boeing Document. 25
Wake Vortex Every aircraft generates wakes behind the wing due to the strong circulation required to generate lift Circulation Strength Boundary Wake vortices depend on aircraft mass, wingspan and atmospheric conditions 26
FAA Wake Vortex Classification Superheavy 27
Future Wake Vortex Classification FAA Introduced a new re-categorization procedure at Memphis International Airport in 2012 Consult FAA Order N JO 7110.608 28
Future Wake Vortex Classification The new Re-Categorization standards have been developed by FAA and ICAO Aircraft groups have changed! A = Superheavy aircraft, F = small aircraft 29
Future Wake Vortex Classification 30
International Air Transport Association (IATA) Classification Used in the forecast of aircraft movements at an airport based on the IATA forecast methodology 31
Other Classifications that You Will Hear in Trade Magazines Aircraft classification based on the aircraft use General aviation aircraft (GA) Corporate aircraft (CA) Commuter aircraft (COM) Transport aircraft (TA) Short-range Medium-range Long-range 32
General Aviation Aircraft 33
Corporate Aircraft 34
Commuter Aircraft 35
Short-Range Transport Aircraft 36
Medium-Range Transport Aircraft 37
Long-Range Transport Aircraft 38
Aircraft Trends Very large capacity aircraft (NLA or VLCA) Airbus A380 and Boeing 747-8 New generation long-range transport Boeing 787 and Airbus A350 New generation short range aircraft Bombardier C-Series, Mitsubishi Regional Jet (MRJ), Comac 919 and Irkut MC-21 39
Very Large Capacity Aircraft (NLA/VLCA) Airbus A380 was introduced into service in 2008 Boeing 747-8 was introduced in 2012 A380-800 at LAX Airport (A. Trani) 40
Tradeoffs in the Design of Aircraft Aircraft designed purely on aerodynamic principles would be costly to the airport operator yet have low Direct Operating Cost (DOC) Aircraft heavily constrained by current airport design standards might not be very efficient to operate Adaptations of aircraft to fit airports can be costly Some impact on aerodynamic performance Weight considerations (i.e., landing gear design) Tradeoffs are needed to address all these issues 41
Impacts of Very Large Capacity Aircraft Large capacity aircraft requirements Airside infrastructure impacts (taxiways and runways) Runway capacity impacts Airport terminal impacts (gates and aprons) Pavement design considerations Noise considerations 42
Very Large Capacity Aircraft: Airbus A380-800 43
Comparative Size of Airbus A380 and Other Heavy Aircraft 63.0* 44
Aircraft Wing Aspect Ratio (AR) S AR = b 2 / S AR b 2 wing aspect ratio (dimensionless) wingspan (ft 2 or m 2 ) b S wing area (ft 2 or m 2 ) 45
Evolution of Aircraft Wing Aspect Ratios Long range aircraft require very long and thin wings to be aerodynamically efficient 46
Evolution of Aircraft Mass and Wingspan 47
Very Large Capacity Aircraft Runway and Taxiway Requirements Very large capacity aircraft require wider runways and wider taxiways 48
Large Capacity Aircraft Require Larger Maneuvering Envelopes source: Airbus and the author 49
Airport Terminal Impacts Large capacity aircraft require more complex gate interfaces to expedite the enplaning/ deplaning of passengers 50
Capacity Impacts of Very Large Capacity Aircraft Operations Runway capacity is influenced by larger in-trail separations (i.e., reduction in runway capacity) Airport terminal volume requirements could increase due to the larger size of the aircraft (up to 850 passengers in a single class configuration) 51
Runway Capacity Impact Analysis The diagram shows that large capacity aircraft can reduce the runway hourly capacity of the airport 52
Airport Pavement Design Impacts Very large capacity aircraft have complex landing gear configurations that require careful analysis to understand their impacts on airport pavements 53