An aircraft lifting surface attached to the rear or frontal end of the aircraft fuselage with a variable sweep angle α in an inboard part and with a constant sweep angle α1 in an outboard part. The aircraft lifting surface can be for example a horizontal tail plane or a vertical tail plane attached to the rear end fuselage or a canard attached to the frontal end fuselage.

An aircraft lifting surface attached to the rear or frontal end of the aircraft fuselage with a variable sweep angle α in an inboard part and with a constant sweep angle α1 in an outboard part. The aircraft lifting surface can be for example a horizontal tail plane or a vertical tail plane attached to the rear end fuselage or a canard attached to the frontal end fuselage.

The present invention relates to an airplane capable of hyper-short/vertical takeoff and landing (hyper-STOL/VTOL) and having non-rotatable vertical propulsions. It attempts to overcome a limitation of QuadPlane design by making efficient use of both horizontal and vertical propulsions during hovering and vertical flight.

The present invention relates to an airplane capable of hyper-short/vertical takeoff and landing (hyper-STOL/VTOL) and having non-rotatable vertical propulsions. It attempts to overcome a limitation of QuadPlane design by making efficient use of both horizontal and vertical propulsions during hovering and vertical flight.

Embodiments are directed to a high speed, vertical lift aircraft that has vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) capability and is capable of converting to a forward-flight mode (e.g., prop-mode). The rotors blades can be folded for high speed forward flight propelled by a turbine engine (e.g., jet-mode). The rotor blades on the tail sitter aircraft have a “stop-fold” capability, which means that the rotor blades are stopped in flight and folded back to reduce drag. This allows the tail sitter aircraft to achieve a higher speed than a tilt-rotor aircraft. In some embodiments, the tail sitter aircraft achieves both rotor-borne flight and jet-borne flight by having two separate engines. An additional advantage of the tail-sitter aircraft versus a horizontally oriented fixed engine aircraft is that supplemental jet thrust can be used for take-off if desired.

A hybrid propulsion aircraft is described having a distributed electric propulsion system. The distributed electric propulsion system includes a turbo shaft engine that drives one or more generators through a gearbox. The generator provides AC power to a plurality of ducted fans (each being driven by an electric motor). The ducted fans may be integrated with the hybrid propulsion aircraft's wings. The wings can be pivotally attached to the fuselage, thereby allowing for vertical take-off and landing. The design of the hybrid propulsion aircraft mitigates undesirable transient behavior traditionally encountered during a transition from vertical flight to horizontal flight. Moreover, the hybrid propulsion aircraft offers a fast, constant-altitude transition, without requiring a climb or dive to transition. It also offers increased efficiency in both hover and forward flight versus other VTOL aircraft and a higher forward max speed than traditional rotorcraft.

A hybrid propulsion aircraft is described having a distributed electric propulsion system. The distributed electric propulsion system includes a turbo shaft engine that drives one or more generators through a gearbox. The generator provides AC power to a plurality of ducted fans (each being driven by an electric motor). The ducted fans may be integrated with the hybrid propulsion aircraft's wings. The wings can be pivotally attached to the fuselage, thereby allowing for vertical take-off and landing. The design of the hybrid propulsion aircraft mitigates undesirable transient behavior traditionally encountered during a transition from vertical flight to horizontal flight. Moreover, the hybrid propulsion aircraft offers a fast, constant-altitude transition, without requiring a climb or dive to transition. It also offers increased efficiency in both hover and forward flight versus other VTOL aircraft and a higher forward max speed than traditional rotorcraft.

The canards of a vehicle or object generally come out of the body on the nose. When the canards are positioned at the nose tip or beyond the nose tip of the body of a vehicle or object, it becomes more streamlined. By becoming more streamlined, the vehicle or object can achieve better performances in drag reduction and stability.

The canards of a vehicle or object generally come out of the body on the nose. When the canards are positioned at the nose tip or beyond the nose tip of the body of a vehicle or object, it becomes more streamlined. By becoming more streamlined, the vehicle or object can achieve better performances in drag reduction and stability.

An aircraft includes a boundary layer ingestion fan defining a centerline and including a plurality of fan blades rotatable about the centerline. The aircraft also includes a fuselage extending between a forward end and an aft end along a longitudinal direction, the boundary layer ingestion fan positioned within the fuselage at the aft end of the fuselage, the fuselage defining an inlet upstream of the boundary layer ingestion fan extending at least about 180 degrees around the centerline of the boundary layer ingestion fan, the fuselage further defining an exhaust downstream of the boundary layer ingestion fan.