Flight Evaluation of Augmented Controls for Approach and Landing of Powered-Lift Aircraft

Flight experiments were conducted with Ames Research Center's Quiet Short-Haul Research Aircraft to evaluate the influence of highly augmented control modes on the ability of pilots to execute precision instrument flight operations in the terminal area, particularly approaches to and landings on a short runway. The aircraft is a powered-lift, short-takeoff and landing configuration that is equipped with a modern digital fly-by-wire flight control system, a head-up display, and a color head-down display that make it possible to investigate control concepts and display format and content for full envelope, powered-lift operations. Considerable attention has been devoted in this flight program to assessing flightpath and airspeed command and stabilization modes developed using nonlinear, inverse model-following methods. The primary benefit of this control concept was realized when the pilot was required to execute a complex transition and approach under instrument conditions and in the presence of a wide range of wind and turbulence conditions. The concept and its design criteria have been defined to the point that is ready for consideration for aircraft design when warranted by mission requirements or complex control configurations.

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