The last couple of weeks, students learned about the design, structure, and construction of airplane wings. They engaged in hands on learning by constructing a mock airplane wing which is roughly half scale of a Vans RV-3 airplane.
Below are photos of building the ribs, spare, and testing the construction in preparation for student use.
Students in aviation club worked with Mr. Evans (CFI) on their approach and landing technique.
Students at Aviation Club have an opportunity to work through various stations learning about aeronautics through basic ground instruction and various flight simulators. Below is a student is receiving instruction from Mr. Evans on basics flight maneuvers using our X-Planes Flight Simulator.
Students visited the flight operation center at California Baptist University in Riverside, Ca. The University offers aviation majors in Aviation Dispatch, Aviation Flight, and Aviation Managements. More information can be found on the University website here. In addition to visiting CBU, students toured the Planes of Fame museum in Chino, Ca. More information about the museum can be found here.
Today, students experimented with changing the angle of attack and adding flaps to the wing to see the affect it has on the wings ability to generate lift. Students first tested how much weight the wing could carry with a zero angle of attack and no flaps. They then repeated the process but each time increased the angle of attack and then with flaps. The students discovered that increasing the angle of attack and/or adding flaps increased the weight thus the lift threefold. This concludes SJVA’s Summer Aviation Institute but will resume in August once the school year starts.
Today, students used our wing cutter to make foam wings for their balsa gliders. After they created their foam wings they had an opportunity to test the lifting capabilities on our wing tester. Tomorrow, students will experiment on how changing the angle of attack affects the wings ability to generate lift.
Today, students learned that wing loading is the ratio of an airplanes gross weight divided by the surface area of the wing. The wing loading determines how much weight a square foot of the wing must lift. Over the next couple of days students will continue to do calculations, modify aircraft, and run simulations to better understand how changing the wing loading of an airplane impacts aircraft performance. 
Today, students learned about the aspect ratio of wings and how they relate to the amount of lift a wing generates. Using Plane Maker and X-Plane simulator, the class modified the wing of a Vans RV 10 aircraft with five different aspect ratios. They then proceeded to fly each aircraft three times recording the takeoff distance for each takeoff. The class came to the conclusion that the wing with the largest aspect ratio generated the greatest amount of lift and required the least amount of runway to lift off. Just like the previous days, students spent time flying simulators, flying the RC airplane, and building the RC Piper Cub.
Today, students learn about how atmospheric pressure and density altitude have an affect on both aircraft instruments and overall aircraft performance. Student’s calculated the density altitude at Hemet Ryan airport using the formula: pressure altitude + [120 x (OAT – ISA Temp)]. Same as the previous days, students continued to fly our simulators, fly the RC airplane, and build our electric Piper Cub.
San Jacinto Valley Academy 