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Old 25th Nov 2012, 14:40
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John Farley

Do a Hover - it avoids G
 
Join Date: Oct 1999
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It is easy to misunderstand the benefits of a ‘ski-jump, or inclined ramp, on a ship.

If you run a car or a bike up one you will fly (remain above the height of the level deck ) for a while even though these vehicles have no lift generating capability.

If you use an aeroplane that has some lift generating capability you will fly for longer even though you may not have lift equal to your weight. In this case if during the time you fly (thanks to the ski-jump) you can accelerate to a speed where lift will equal weight you have completed your takeoff.

So to obtain the advantages of a ski-jump (with any aeroplane) you need two things:

1 A good t/w ratio – very common with many current military aircraft – enabling you to take full advantage of the seconds of flight that the skijump provides.

2 You need to be able to control the aircraft pitch and roll attitude at the (low) ramp exit speed either by good aerodynamics or a reaction control system.
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