Preventing Loss of Aircraft Control: Aiding pilots in manual recovery from roll-limited situations

Loss of aircraft lateral control can be problem, specifically when multi engine propeller aircraft are faced with an engine failure. Another, less frequent phenomena is the loss of lateral control in case of aircraft damage. In this thesis, a method is developed to determine the minimum required aircraft velocity as a function of aircraft state and pilot inputs. This led to a new display that was evaluated with pilots in the loop in the SIMONA research simulator. Test revealed that recovery from roll limited situations is a very demanding task for pilots. The added controllability indications can help but only after extensive training. The handling of unknown damage could, however, improve considerable by using tyhe new indications in combination with a controllability check.Herman J. Koolstra is a retired experimental test pilot of the RNLAF. After his retirment he worked for the Military Aviation Authority and started his research at TUDelft at the department of Control and Simulation.Control & Simulatio