Flying Qualities Criteria for Small General Aviation Airplanes as Determined by In-Flight Simulation

In-flight simulation techniques using a variable-stability airplane have been used to determine quantitative flying qualities criteria for small general aviation aircraft. Recent experiments covering longitudinal short-period frequency and damping, pitch control sensitivity, and lift-curve slope indicate that the combination of parameters giving the best level of flying qualities can be identified, but reasonably wide variations are possible without causing serious degradation. Instrument approaches can be successfully flown with moderate levels of static instability, but even small instabilities may be undesirable due to the danger of upsets following pilot distraction.