APPLICATION OF ACTIVE FLEXIBLE WING TECHNOLOGY TO THE AGILE FALCON

The Active Flexible Wing is an integrated technology wing concept of special interest to systems requiring high maneuverability at high speed. The following article examines the results from an application of the Active Flexible Wing (AFW) concept to an F-16 Agile Falcon, low-speed aeroelastic model. The article also summarizes, for archival purposes, design and fabrication procedures typical for construction of low-speed aeroelastic models. The Active Flexible Wing concept is applied to a 1/5 scale model design based upon full scale preliminary wing design studies conducted for the U.S. Air Force F-16 Agile Falcon fighter program. The model is equipped with multiple leading- and trailing-edge control surfaces. Wind tunnel test results are presented showing wing control power increases generated through the use of the leading- and trailing-edge control surfaces in conjunction with increased wing flexibility. The results show that the Active Flexible Wing concept is a viable concept for the Agile Falcon planform and that a leading-edge outboard control surface can be a particularly powerful control power effector.