BODY FREEDOM FLUTTER OF SCALED VEHICLES: FROM BLENDED WING BODY TO CONVENTIONAL CONFIGURATION

In this presentation, the state of the art of the development of flight flutter test vehicles for Body-Freedom-Flutter (BFF) study in the last decade is briefly reviewed at first. Next, as an effort of the authors during recent years, the development and BFF investigation of scaled vehicles for flight flutter test is introduced. The design, build and test campaigns are detailed, first for a blended wing body (BWB) scaled vehicle, and then for a conventional configuration with very short fuselage. Theoretical and experimental correlation study is conducted for the aeroelastic stability of both vehicles. Finally, lessons learned are summarized and pertinent conclusions are drawn upon the present work.