Full-Scale In-Flight Flow Investigation of a High-Lift Vortex System by Means of Particle Image Velocimetry

The understanding and prediction of high-lift aerodynamics of a civil aircraft in landing configuration still lacks validated and comprehensively assessed databases involving numerical simulations, wind tunnel tests as well as flight tests. The joint research project HINVA (High lift INflight VAlidation) aims on closing this gap for a short to medium range transport aircraft together with its specific high-lift devices. The research aircraft, used to apply all three methodologies, is the Airbus A320 ATRA (Advanced Technology Research Aircraft). The present work comprised an airborne particle image velocimetry (PIV) measurement conducted as part of the second flight test campaign of the project HINVA. The specific task of the PIV system was the quantification of the outer strake vortex which was initiated by the outer vortex generator of the nacelle in the high-lift regime. PIV data at different Reynolds numbers and angles of attack was acquired and evaluated. This contribution summarizes the PIV flight test study by presenting its setup, realization and results.