Drafting............

[colmbo]

Zoney's question was a good one though and still has me thinking - since it is rather benenficial with some situations in the automotive world, is there any situation where wake turbulence could be of benefit with an aircraft?  Then HiTech had to come outa left-field to remind us that all tractor prop aircraft naturally create their own before the aircraft follows, tuche.

I'm bettin Hitech is referring to flying thru his wake upon completion of a loop.  Kind of like banging thru your wake as you do steep 720s

[Golfer]

is there any situation where wake turbulence could be of benefit with an aircraft?

Of course there is.

Ever see a flock of Geese?  The same principles carry over.

http://www.nasa.gov/centers/dryden/news/NewsReleases/2003/03-42.html

http://www.nasa.gov/centers/dryden/news/NewsReleases/2001/01-77.html

[danny76]

Motorcycles and cars drafting takes place in extremely close company. You watch Rossi and the like drafting the guy in front he is within a few feet, outside that the draught is broken. Not sure how it wouldd be beneficial here?

[Letalis]

It'd be nice, but modeling dynamic airflow apart from the flight model of the individual aircraft would likely require a fair bit of coad that could be devoted elsewhere to more effect.  I've never seen turbies modeled quite like the real thing in a software program, to include the X-Plane series. 

[Rob52240]

Motorcycles and cars drafting takes place in extremely close company. You watch Rossi and the like drafting the guy in front he is within a few feet, outside that the draught is broken. Not sure how it wouldd be beneficial here?

Americans need to be educated on Rossi.  He's like Michael Jordan and Dale #3 and Dick Butkus combined.

[Zoney]

Motorcycles and cars drafting takes place in extremely close company. You watch Rossi and the like drafting the guy in front he is within a few feet, outside that the draught is broken. Not sure how it wouldd be beneficial here?

Yes, the draft advantage is huge when you are within a few feet, but the higher the speed the greater the distance that some advantage is gained. At 200 mph I could feel and gain an advantage from about 40 to 50 feet.  On a bike because you are out in the elements you can feel this low pressure pocket very well.
As you got closer you could feel it more and more until as you approached within a few feet you would have to perfectly time the moment you would break out of the draft and slip outside the slipstream and use this advantage for the pass.  Nothing drove this lesson home as much as racing on the high banks of Daytona.  Make the pass too soon and the rider you had just overtaken could pull back in your slipstream and use it to repass you.

[Babalonian]

You sure he wasn't talking about flying an accurate figure?  You can fly a circle and still feel your wake when you complete it.

Both would apply.  Then the geese flying-V.  All benefits to wake turbulence, so there's a few in given situations.

Of course there is.

Ever see a flock of Geese?  The same principles carry over.

http://www.nasa.gov/centers/dryden/news/NewsReleases/2003/03-42.html

http://www.nasa.gov/centers/dryden/news/NewsReleases/2001/01-77.html

Aren't there a few other principles/physics still working against single-engine (or multi) prop-driven aircraft that aren't for geese, making it more difficult or less effecient?  IE: prop-wash torque/spin (or whatever that term is).  I believe there's more to a plane's wake (physics-wise) than a gooses, if im not mistaken.

[mtnman]

Both would apply.  Then the geese flying-V.  All benefits to wake turbulence, so there's a few in given situations.

Aren't there a few other principles/physics still working against single-engine (or multi) prop-driven aircraft that aren't for geese, making it more difficult or less effecient?  IE: prop-wash torque/spin (or whatever that term is).  I believe there's more to a plane's wake (physics-wise) than a gooses, if im not mistaken.

Obviously the geese benefit from drafting to some extent.

One thing I've found interesting is that when one of my birds overtakes a duck , pheasant, etc, it doesn't seem to be effected by turbulence to any level that I can detect.  This applies both for falcons (which spend a fairly brief period, if at all, behind their quarry) and for accipiters, which get into some hair-raising, fast, tight-turning chases.

I would expect turbulence to be different simply due to the difference between propulsion methods of birds vs. aircraft.  I also don't know of any planes that are quite as streamlined as a falcon (depending upon the birds flight configuration), although nothing is drafting off of them...

[FLS]

Wouldn't the birds adjust their wing shape as soon as they feel turbulence?

Birds and aircraft both produce wing tip vortices and since the vortex is rotating it has an up side and a down side. The up side is to the outside. You can see that in the position of the geese in a V. They are aligned on the updraft of the wingtip vortices.

[Rob52240]

I always thought the TT needed more drafting.  Then I found Irish road racing.  Either should astound any American.