Continuous Turbulence Design Loads Calculations in Presence of Nonlinear Controls

The paper deals with the problem of defining the design loads for aircraft models subjected to Continuous Turbulence (CT) in presence of non-linear controls. CT gust design methods are usually based on von Kármán Power Spectral Density (PSD) description of turbulence velocity and use frequency domain techniques to compute the loads. This definition of turbulence in the frequency plane represents the basic problems for nonlinear dynamic analysis, for which the principle of superposition no longer holds. Two literature methods (Matched Filter theory and Spectral Gust) have been implemented and compared with the Statistical Method, developed by the Department of Structural Dynamics and Aeroelasticity of EADS-CASA, Airbus Military, Getafe (Spain). The results obtained in the case of a military transport aircraft are also reported