PPRuNe Forums - View Single Post - C5 and An-124 wings straighten in flight?
Old 24th Mar 2019, 10:53
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ProPax
 
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Originally Posted by ICM
I will happily give way to an aerodynamicist on this but, for what it's worth, and based on my time with the C-141 that also had drooped wings on the ground, they certainly straightened out as lift increased. And the effect of the weight of fuel in the wings should also be considered. I could touch the wingtip on the ramp before departure on a flight of four or more hours whereas, after landing, that wingtip would be way out of reach.
Oh, I forgot about that pair! C-141 and its Soviet counterpart Il-76/78.

Doesn't that affect fatigue? That wing weighs tons, literally, and it moves several meters, it seems, with the changes in its own weight. I remember reading that B-52 (?) or some other long-winged bomber was flapping its wings in flight so much that fatigue cracks formed before it even landed. I may be wrong or exhaggerating... a bit.
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