Support interference corrections of a common research model with flying-wing configuration

Since flying-wing configuration has excellent performance in aerodynamic, stealth capability and structure, it has become an ideal configuration of the future unmanned ah- vehicles. Compared with conventional airplane layout, the support interference effects and the local shape distortions are more obvious. Though the support effect is now accounted for in most wind tunnel procedures thanks to various correction methods, they call upon dedicated experiments which are expensive, complex and require the introduction of another support. Solving the steady Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes equations for complex configuration has become routine task in research and it has occasionally been used to investigate model support effects. In this paper, the flow field and force disturbance caused by the support was calculated by comparing simulations with and without support for several angles of attack at Mach number equals 0.9. Meanwhile, and amounts and regulations of support interference effects on forces and moments for this flying-wing model were obtained.