Wing Pressure Distribution and Rotor-Blade Motion of an Autogiro as Determined in Flight

This report presents the results of tests in which the pressure distribution over the fixed wing of an autogiro was determined in both steady and accelerated flight. In the steady-flight condition, the rotor-blade motion was also measured. These data show that in steady flight the rotor speed as a function of the air speed is largely affected by the variation of the division of load between the rotor and the wing; as the load on the wing increases, the rotor speed decreases. In steady flight the presence of the slipstream increased both the wing lift at a given air speed and the maximum lift coefficient of the wing above the corresponding values without the slipstream. In abrupt high-speed turns, the wing attained a normal force coefficient of unity at almost the initial value of the air speed and experienced its maximum load before maximum acceleration occurred.