Correlation of Hand Book Method Results with Wind Tunnel Data for a Subsonic UAV Design

In the preliminary design phase of an aircraft, handbook methods are used to size the aircraft and to predict its aerodynamic characteristics and flight performances. For a new twin-boom pusher UAV a systematic comparison of theoretical predictions and wind tunnel test data is performed. It is shown that although performance and stability parameters are generally well predicted important deviations can occur if the specific airplane configuration is not taken into account in a sufficiently accurate manner. This is illustrated using results from pitching moment estimates for different tail configurations.