TY  - JOUR
A1  - Götten, Falk
A1  - Finger, Felix
A1  - Havermann, Marc
A1  - Braun, Carsten
A1  - Marino, M.
A1  - Bil, C.
T1  - Full configuration drag estimation of short-to-medium range fixed-wing UAVs and its impact on initial sizing optimization
T2  - CEAS Aeronautical Journal
N2  - The paper presents the derivation of a new equivalent skin friction coefficient for estimating the parasitic drag of short-to-medium range fixed-wing unmanned aircraft. The new coefficient is derived from an aerodynamic analysis of ten different unmanned aircraft used for surveillance, reconnaissance, and search and rescue missions. The aircraft is simulated using a validated unsteady Reynolds-averaged Navier Stokes approach. The UAV’s parasitic drag is significantly influenced by the presence of miscellaneous components like fixed landing gears or electro-optical sensor turrets. These components are responsible for almost half of an unmanned aircraft’s total parasitic drag. The new equivalent skin friction coefficient accounts for these effects and is significantly higher compared to other aircraft categories. It is used to initially size an unmanned aircraft for a typical reconnaissance mission. The improved parasitic drag estimation yields a much heavier unmanned aircraft when compared to the sizing results using available drag data of manned aircraft.
KW  - Parasitic drag
KW  - UAV
KW  - CFD
KW  - Aircraft sizing
Y1  - 2021
UR  - https://opus.bibliothek.fh-aachen.de/opus4/frontdoor/index/index/docId/9606
SN  - 1869-5590 (Online)
SN  - 1869-5582 (Print)
N1  - Corresponding author: Falk Götten
VL  - 12
SP  - 589
EP  - 603
PB  - Springer
CY  - Berlin
ER  -