Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Aircraft Energy Management: A Best Practice For Integrating Safety And Efficiency, Juan Merkt

National Training Aircraft Symposium (NTAS)

Aircraft Energy Management: A Best Practice for Integrating Safety and Efficiency

The airplane is the quintessential energy system, constantly transforming, transferring, distributing, storing, and exchanging various forms of energy as it moves through the air. By its very nature, flight warrants safe and efficient management of the airplane’s energy. Thus, poor aircraft energy management can lead to unsafe and/or inefficient operations. Unfortunately, energy principles associated with motion control and performance have not found their way into civilian flight training. As a result, energy management skills, founded on those guiding principles, are not adequately taught to new pilots. The energy-training gap …