Is it possible to have a minimum wing loading at climb segment of our design aircraft (air superiority)?
Which segment would have minimum wing loading i.e. climb, take off, cruise, instantaneous turn, sustained turn, etc?
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$\begingroup$ To have a minimum wing loading in climb you're going to be burning a lot more fuel. I suspect Vy maximum rate of climb would still be using the wing. Study of maximum altitude record setting techniques may shed some light on this. A race between a (lower drag) jet and an F16 would be interesting, but the smaller winged (F-104) may need more fuel (weight) to reach the same altitude. I would bet on the F16. $\endgroup$– Robert DiGiovanniCommented Aug 16, 2019 at 5:08
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From lowest to highest wing loading:
- Climb: if a fixed wing plane and the nose is pointing up, some of the vertical force must be generated by the thrust.
- Cruise: the lift must only compensate for the weight.
- Inducing a turn: the rolling velocity has very little effect on wing loading.
- Take-off: a slight positive g-loading during the nose-up motion.
- Sustained turn: up to the maximum design load factor. 2.5g for passenger aeroplanes, up to 9g for fighter jets, with a proportionately greater wing loading that that in cruise.
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1$\begingroup$ Why "up to 2g"? As much as the aircraft holds! If this is "air superiority", it should take 9g or so. By the same token, it should be able to climb vertically, or just about, with zero wing loading. $\endgroup$– ZeusCommented Aug 15, 2019 at 0:33
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$\begingroup$ Small nitpick, harkening back to questions regarding lift in a climb, it is more efficient to use the wing to climb up to a point where vertical lift becomes so small (very steep climb angle), then it is more efficient to reduce AOA and climb with thrust only. But if using wing to climb (as well as thrust vertical vector), loading may be greater than (lower AOA) cruise. $\endgroup$ Commented Aug 16, 2019 at 4:58