Numerical study of the aerodyanmic forces and flow physics of a delta wing in mutational grond effect

During the take-off and landing maneuvers on the deck of a carrier-based aircraft, an abrupt change in ride height known as the mutational ground effect (MGE) can significantly affect the flow field characteristics and the aerodynamics of the carrier-based aircraft, which will affect its safety. In this paper, the Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes equations with Spalart-Allmaras turbulence model are used to numerically simulate the MGE of the standard delta wing model VFE-2 at an angle of attack (AOA) of 20°. In the course of a sudden reduction or (increase) in ride height, the VFE-2’s lift, drag and nose-down pitching moment increase or (decrease) nearly monotonously and the changes in the total aerodynamic force and moment are mainly from the windward surface. In addition, due to the flow transport effect from the windward surface to the leeward surface and the lag of the near field wake of the leading edge vortex (LEV) affected by the step change, the regulation time of the leeward surface aerodynamic force is greater than that on the windward surface.