Piloted Simulation Assessment of a High-Speed Civil Transport Configuration

An assessment of a proposed configuration of a high-speed civil transport was conducted by using NASA and industry research pilots. The assessment was conducted to evaluate operational aspects of the configuration from a pilot's perspective, with the primary goal being to identify potential deficiencies in the configuration. The configuration was evaluated within and at the limits of the design operating envelope to determine the suitability of the configuration to maneuver in a typical mission as well as in emergency or envelope-limit conditions. The Cooper-Harper rating scale was used to evaluate the flying qualities of the configuration. A summary flying qualities metric was also calculated. The assessment was performed in the Langley six-degree-of-freedom Visual Motion Simulator. The effect of a restricted cockpit field-of-view due to obstruction by the vehicle nose was not included in this study. Tasks include landings, takeoffs, climbs, descents, overspeeds, coordinated turns, and recoveries from envelope limit excursions. Emergencies included engine failures, loss of stability augmentation, engine inlet unstarts, and emergency descents. Minimum control speeds and takeoff decision, rotation, and safety speeds were also determined.