Flutter and resonance characteristics of a model cantilever wing carrying localised masses

Abstract

Resonance tests on a model cantilever wing carrying concentrated masses were made in conjunction with the flutter tests of R. & M. 2533. Measurements were made with masses up to approximately five times the mass of the bare wing added at the following positions in the section 0.3 span from the root of the wing: (i) Externally 0.28c ahead of leading edge (ii) Internally 0.3c behind leading edge. The flutter and resonance characteristics are placed in juxtaposition, and an attempt is made to correlate the two sets of phenomena by means of the Kussner criterion. The distortion modes of flutter are analysed into normal mode components, and the results suggest that for a wing rigidly fixed at the root and carrying a single concentrated mass the first three normal modes are sufficient to define the flutter mode.