Implications of scale effect for the prediction of high angle of attack aerodynamics

Scale effect is of significance in all experimental aerodynamics testing. At high angles of attack such issues as Reynolds and Mach number scaling are further complicated by the presence of complex, unsteady separated flow structures. The understanding and quantification of such flow effects remains a substantial challenge to the combat aircraft designer. The challenge, especially during conceptual and preliminary design stages, is to obtain sufficiently accurate information to make relevant design decisions, addressing potential weaknesses before proceeding to detail design. The focus in the present review is on the application of the water tunnel in such cases. The combination of qualitative and quantitative data obtainable from the water tunnel provides a useful complement to other tools during the early design stages. The effect of Reynolds number in particular is however critical; and appreciation of its effects are critical to the effective use of such a tool. It is shown however that for certain configurations such effects can be small in comparison to other experimental effects.