Three-Dimensional Aerodynamic Simulations of Jumping Paratroopers and Falling Cargo Payloads

Abstract

The aim is to develop computational techniques for studying aerodynamic interactions between multiple objects when an object exits and separates from an aircraft. The object could be a paratrooper jumping out of a transport aircraft or a package of emergency aid dropped from a cargo plane. In all these cases, the computational challenge is to predict the dynamic behavior and path of the object, so that the separation process is safe and effective. Here we have correctly modeled a paratrooper jumping from a transport aircraft and an emergency aid package dropped from a cargo plane. Because these phenomena have been realistically modeled, we can now make model design changes to the aircraft geometry that beneficially affect the falling trajectories, preventing problems such as paratrooper crossover as well as locating the fallen payload. Moreover, these multibody techniques can be extended to other problems, such as the hemological flow of human immunodeficiency virus virions.

Comments on paratrooper‐separation modeling with the DSD/SST formulation and FOIST

“…Some results from paratrooper-separation computations carried out with the DSD/SST formulation and FOIST were reported in a recently published article by Udoewa [26]. We provide here some observations on those computations.…”