Effects of empennage surface location on aerodynamic characteristics of a twin-engine afterbody model with nonaxisymmetric nozzles

Abstract

An investigation has been conducted in the Langley 16-Foot Transonic Tunnel to determine the effects of empennage surface location and vertical tail cant angle on the aft-end aerodynamic characteristics of a twin-engine fighter-type configuration. The configuration featured two-dimensional convergent-divergent nozzles and twin-vertical tails. The investigation was conducted with different empennage locations that included two horizontal and three vertical tail positions. Vertical tail cant angle was varied from -10 deg to 20 deg for one selected configuration. Tests were conducted at Mach number 0.60 to 1.20 and at angles of attack -3 to 9 deg. Nozzle pressure ratio was varied from jet off to approximately 9, depending upon Mach number. Tail interference effects were present throughout the range of Mach numbers tested and found to be either favorable or adverse, depending upon test condition and model configuration. At a Mach number of 0.90, adverse interference effects accounted for a significant percentage of total aft-end drag. Interference effects on the nozzle were generally favorable but became adverse as the horizontal tails were moved from a mid to an aft position. The configuration with nonaxisymmetric nozzles had lower total aft-end drag with tails-off than a similar configuration with axisymmetric nozzles at Mach numbers of 0.60 and 0.90