Aircraft Flight: A Description of the Physical Principles of Aircraft Flight (2nd Edition) [Paperback]

R. H. Barndard (Author), D. R. Philpott (Author), R. H. Barnard (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1996 | ISBN-10: 0582236568 | ISBN-13: 978-0582236561 | Edition: 2 Sub

The first edition ofAircraft Flight, published in 1989, broke new ground in the field of aviation literature by providing an accurate, rather than mathematical, description of aircraft flight. This revised second edition builds in the strengths of the first with a clear and thoroughly up-to-date description of the principles of aerodynamics, mechanics and propulsion. As well as being a 'how it works' book, the range of compromises, choices and influences that can affect design decisions are examined. Significant developments in the field have been put into their historical perspective to give the reader a complete overview of the subject. Aircraft Flight will prove invaluable to anyone working or planning a career in the aircraft industry. For students of aeronautical engineering, it contains all the descriptive material necessary for courses from technician to degree level, and is background reading to the more mathematical texts. For trainee pilots, military and commercial, it gives an understanding of the fundamental principles of flight. For new entrants to the aviation and aerospace industries, it provides a basic understanding of the technical principles of aeroplanes and for aviation enthusiasts it gives a non-mathematical treatment they can readily comprehend.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

The first edition of Aircraft Flight, published in 1989 broke new ground in the field of technical aviation literature by providing accurate physical, rather than mathematical, descriptions of the principles of aircraft flight.

The book has subsequently established itself as a popular and respected introduction to the study of aeronautics, and is now on the recommended reading lists for aerospace and aeronautical engineering courses at a large number of universities and colleges around the world.

In this fourth edition, the text and illustrations have been updated, and important recent developments such as unmanned air vehicles and the low-orbit space-plane are covered.

Key features of the fourth edition:

• additional and updated references and recommendations for further reading
• updated photographs and figures
• improvements to the technical descriptions, based on a reappraisal and on readers’ comments

Aircraft Flight will prove invaluable to anyone working in or planning a career in aviation. For students of aeronautical engineering, it contains all the descriptive material necessary for courses from technician to degree level, and will provide background reading to the more mathematical texts. For trainee pilots it gives an understanding of the fundamental principles of flight. For new entrants to the aerospace and related industries it provides a basic understanding of the technical principles of flight, and for aviation enthusiasts it gives a non-mathematical treatment they can readily comprehend.

RH Barnard PhD, CEng, FRAeS; formerly Principal Lecturer in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at the University of Hertfordshire.

DR Philpott PhD, CEng, MRAeS; formerly Principal Aerodynamic Specialist at Raytheon Corporate Jets and Reader in Aerospace Engineering at the University of Hertfordshire.

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 385 pages
• Publisher: Prentice Hall; 2 Sub edition (February 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0582236568
• ISBN-13: 978-0582236561
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,072,852 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Useful to both pilots and students.

, March 30, 1998

By 

[e-mail] (Wichita, Kansas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Aircraft Flight: A Description of the Physical Principles of Aircraft Flight (2nd Edition) (Paperback)

Enthusiasts who attempt to use introductory aerodynamics books to learn how aircraft function are often disappointed. These texts analyze general types of fluid phenomena at a basic level, without clearly describing their effects on aircraft. Besides being too academic for beginners, teaching introductory flight theory is not the objective of these.

For an explanation of aerodynamics specific to aircraft which is readily understandable, Barnard and Philpott have written this thoroughly illustrated and clearly written title. The book's material is presented non-mathematically, and includes relevant fluid mechanics, selected aircraft components, the challenges faced by certain categories of aircraft, and design requirements of all aircraft. After each aerodynamic principle is described, the authors then explain its importance to aircraft behaviour and performance.

The authors have attempted to avoid the same hackneyed explanations used in so many other books wherever these are unclear. A common failing which the authors do have however, is a reluctance to briefly interrupt a lesson in order to explain notions being used which were not explained earlier.

In addition to teaching casual aircraft fans, this book can provide additional help for university students having trouble visualizing or verbalizing the phenomena described mathematically in their introductory flight theory courses. Aircraft Flight is excellent assistance, as the language gives as precise and thorough a description as can be achieved without formulae. Readers benefit from the British approach to writing, which does not entail concatenating trite expressions. Unfortunately, the book contains no chapter summaries nor study questions.

While it may seem obvious, it should be mentationed that, despite its title, this is not a guide to better piloting. Barnard and Philpott were also involved with the book "Mechanics of Flight" also an introductory book, but with a more quantitative content.