In order to maximize stealth, most new military fighter/attack aircraft are designed to carry weapons internally. Associated wind tunnel testing of stores inside an internal bomb bay or cavity can be problematic due to the use of a sting or strut to place the simulated store in the desired position inside the internal cavity. Since aft mounted stings are usually not feasible, a strut mounted sting is typically used for determination of moments on a simulated store in an internal cavity. However, these strut devices can impact store freestream aerodynamics. A study was completed to see if computational fluid dynamics could be used to identify the potential impact on the strut on store aerodynamics.
NomenclatureARA = Aircraft Research Association CAD = computer aided design CFD = computational fluid dynamics CPU = central processor unit GBU = guided bomb unit NICS = Navy Internal Carriage and Separation Ma = Mach number Mk-82 = 500 lb bomb TetrUSS = Tetrahedral Unstructured Software System D = cavity depth L = cavity length W = cavity width Z = distance below internal cavity upper surface α = angle of attack β = side slip angle Cm y = pitching moment coefficient
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