An electrically powered STOL aircraft having dedicated motors energized to deploy movable landing gear driven to propel short takeoffs and to actively rotate downwardly to engage the runway surface as the aircraft approaches touchdown on landing. The front and rear landing gear, or both, may be powered and actuated in the landing process with braking to shorten the landing distance, each driven landing gear wheel having a dedicated electric motor and coaxial brake. The landing gear modules are configured and controllable to differentially deploy downwardly so as to enable countersteering during taxi maneuvers and turns.

Systems, methods, and aircraft for managing center of gravity (CG) while transporting large cargo are described. Management of CG is achieved in many ways. In some instances, the aircraft itself is designed to assist in managing CG by providing fuel tanks that minimize the impact of fuel on the net CG of the aircraft. The fuel tanks utilize only a small amount of available volume in the wings for fuel. Disclosures related to properly managing CG while loading wind turbines onto cargo aircraft are also provided. The CG management techniques provided for herein allow for the transportation of wind turbine blades via aircraft, running counter to the typical rail or truck transportation of the same. One such management technique includes accounting for how a rotation of the blades when loading impacts the CG of the blades, and thus taking this into account when placing the blades in the aircraft.

An aircraft includes an airframe, forming a nose structure of the aircraft, and at least one high-level system. The aircraft also includes a wheel well assembly, coupled to the airframe and forming a portion of a nose landing gear bay. The wheel well assembly includes a pressure deck that extends from a right side of the airframe to a left side of the airframe and that forms a portion of a pressure boundary delimiting a pressurized space and a non-pressurized space. The aircraft further includes a floor-panel support, supported by the pressure deck. The aircraft also includes a plurality of transport elements, located between the floor-panel support and the pressure deck.

Systems and methods for loading a cargo aircraft are described. The system includes at least one rail disposed in an interior cargo bay of a cargo aircraft that extends at an angle relative to an interior bottom contact surface of a forward portion of the interior cargo bay, through a kinked portion and an aft portion of the interior cargo bay. Payload-receiving fixtures are described that can be used in conjunction with the rail system, allowing for large cargo, such as wind turbine blades, to be transported by aircraft. Methods of loading a cargo aircraft can include advancing the large payload into the interior cargo bay of the aircraft such that at least one of the payload-receiving fixtures rises relative to a plane defined by the interior bottom contact surface of the forward portion of the interior cargo bay. Various systems, methods, components, and related tooling are also provided.

A fixed-wing cargo aircraft having a kinked fuselage to extend the useable length of a continuous interior cargo bay while still meeting a tailstrike requirement is disclosed. The fuselage defines a continuous interior cargo bay along a majority of its length and a pitch axis about which the cargo aircraft rotates during takeoff while still on the ground. The fuselage includes a forward portion defining longitudinal-lateral plane of the cargo aircraft an aft portion extending aft from the pitch axis to the aft end and containing an aft region of the continuous interior cargo bay that extends along a majority of a length of the aft portion. The aft portion has a centerline extending above the forward upper surface of the aircraft.

A method of making an aircraft includes steps of: assembling a subfloor assembly, including a panel support and plurality of transport elements; coupling a wheel well assembly to an airframe of the aircraft to form a nose landing gear bay of the aircraft; forming a pressure boundary delimiting a pressurized space and a non-pressurized space with the wheel well assembly and the airframe; coupling the subfloor assembly to the wheel well assembly, in the pressurized space, to form a portion of a floor of the aircraft so that the plurality of transport elements is located between the panel support and the wheel well assembly; and coupling the plurality of transport elements to at least one high-level system of the aircraft.

A nose structure of an aircraft includes an airframe. A wheel well assembly is coupled to the airframe and forms a portion of a nose landing gear bay. The wheel well assembly includes a pressure deck that extends from a right side of the airframe to a left side of the airframe and that forms a portion of a pressure boundary delimiting a pressurized space and a non-pressurized space. A floor-panel support is supported by the pressure deck in the pressurized space. The pressure deck and the floor-panel support form a portion of a flight deck floor of a flight deck of the aircraft. A plurality of transport elements is located between the floor-panel support and the pressure deck. The plurality of transport elements is associated with at least one high-level system of the aircraft.

An aircraft includes an airframe, forming a nose structure of the aircraft, and at least one high-level system. The aircraft also includes a wheel well assembly, coupled to the airframe and forming a portion of a nose landing gear bay. The wheel well assembly includes a pressure deck that extends from a right side of the airframe to a left side of the airframe and that forms a portion of a pressure boundary delimiting a pressurized space and a non-pressurized space. The aircraft further includes a floor-panel support, supported by the pressure deck. The aircraft also includes a plurality of transport elements, located between the floor-panel support and the pressure deck.

A method of making an aircraft includes steps of: assembling a subfloor assembly, including a panel support and plurality of transport elements; coupling a wheel well assembly to an airframe of the aircraft to form a nose landing gear bay of the aircraft; forming a pressure boundary delimiting a pressurized space and a non-pressurized space with the wheel well assembly and the airframe; coupling the subfloor assembly to the wheel well assembly, in the pressurized space, to form a portion of a floor of the aircraft so that the plurality of transport elements is located between the panel support and the wheel well assembly; and coupling the plurality of transport elements to at least one high-level system of the aircraft.

A method and apparatus for facilitating the attachment of an internal module in an internal space of an aircraft part is disclosed. The attachment device includes at least one attachment member comprising an attachment shank, a chamber for introducing the attachment member, the chamber including a first orifice through which the attachment shank passes in the installed configuration of the internal module, and a second orifice which serves for the introduction of the attachment member into the chamber from the outside.