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Aeroplane Monthly - Airplanes glossary Category: Travel and Transportation > Airplanes Date & country: 14/12/2007, UK Words: 962

Recovery
The process of returning to horizontal straight flight after a manÅ`uvre, voluntary or involuntary, such as a dive.

Registering Balloon
A small free balloon released into the upper air carrying a meteorograph which registers graphically a reading of the pressure, temperature and humidity at different heights.

Registration Marks
All civil aircraft engaged in international navigation must bear their nationality and registration marks. The first letter or the first two letters indicate the nationality. Immediately following is a hyphen, after which the registration letters are placed. Registration of aircraft is under the control of the Air Ministry in Great Britain. Before …

Relative Humidity
The ratio of the humidity of a given volume of air to its maximum possible humidity at the same temperature.

Research
Research into the problems of aeronautical science is officially under the control of the Advisory Committee of Aeronautics, which was appointed in 1909. Scientific investigations are carried out by the Royal Aircraft Establishment, the National Physical Laboratory, and privately by the leading aeroplane companies.

Reshabar
A strong dry squally NE wind which blows down certain mountain ranges in Southern Kurdistan and which is a great danger to flying.

Resistance Derivatives
Quantities expressing the variation of the forces and movements on aircraft through the disturbance of steady motion. They represent the experimental basis of the theory of stability, and from them the damping factors of aircraft motions can be calculated.

Restoring (or Righting) Moment
That moment tending to restore an aeroplane to its original position after any disturbing movement.

Reversal
A change of more than 90° in direction between the surface wind and the wind in the upper area.

Revolution Indicator
An instrument which records the rate of revolution of the crankshaft of an engine in turns per minute. Sometimes known as a tachometer, and colloquially as a 'rev counter' - although this latter term is, strictly speaking, inaccurate.

Reynolds Number
A non-dimensional ratio expressing conditions for similar motions in viscous fluids such as air. Comparisons of Reynolds Numbers permits comparison of wind tunnel results for small models with full-scale practice. The Reynolds Number is obtained by multiplying the density of the air by the speed and length of the model and dividing by the viscosity…

Rhumb Line
A term used in navigation for a line cutting the meridians on a map at equal angles. An aeroplane flying on a constant course follows a rhumb line.

Rib
A member which gives the desired shape to the external covering of planes and control surfaces and maintains that shape under load.

Ridge
A tongue of high pressure on a weather map. The opposite of a trough of low pressure.

Rigger
A qualified person who is employed in assembling and aligning aircraft.

Rigging
The relative adjustment or alignment of the different components of an aeroplane - particularly the wings.

Rigging Lines
Those cords joining the canopy of a parachute to the harness.

Rigid Airship
An airship which has a rigid framework to maintain the shape of the hull.

Rip Cord
A manually operated device which withdraws a parachute from its pack.

Roak
A blow-hole of carbon monoxide gas in steel which becomes oxidised and causes a permanent flaw after working the material.

Roaring Forties
A nautical term for the prevailing westerly winds of the temperate zones in the Southern Hemisphere.

Rocket Bombs
Rocket-projected bombs are being used from aeroplanes by the Russians as an alternative method of attacking ground targets.

Rocket Propulsion
Rockets have been experimentally tried out on aeroplanes as motive power, particularly in Germany by Opel and Espenlaub. Rocket-assisted take-off is used by the Luftwaffe for overloaded bombers.

Rockets
Rockets carried on the interplane struts were used in the First World War for attacking airships and balloons.

Roll
An aerobatic manÅ`uvre by which an aeroplane makes a full corkscrew revolution about its longitudinal axis.

Rotary Engine
A radial aero-engine in which the crankshaft is stationary and the cylinders revolve, carrying the propeller on an extension.

Rotor
A narrow aerofoil rotating in approximately a horizontal plane about a common axis (like the spokes of a wheel) which produces lift corresponding to the normal fixed wings of an aeroplane. The system can be either freely revolving or power-driven. Rotor is also the name given to the driven vane mechanism of an aero-engine supercharger.

Royal Aero Club
Has for its objects the encouragement and control of all competitions, sporting events, trials and record attempts in connection with aeronautics in the United Kingdom. Founded as the 'Aero Club' in 1901, the Royal Aero Club is by agreement the sole authority in matters of sporting flying. Its offices are at 119 Piccadilly, London W1.

Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force was created on April 1, 1918, by the amalgamation of the Royal Flying Corps and the Royal Naval Air Service. Hitherto they had been separate air arms of the Army and the Royal Navy respectively, although some liaison was provided for when they had been originally formed in 1912. A Fleet Air Arm was provided by the RAF from 1923 …

Royal Aircraft Establishment
The Government aeronautical research station founded at South Farnborough, Hampshire, to succeed the Royal Aircraft Factory in 1918. In addition to windtunnel work on aeroplane models and full-scale components of aircraft, much research is carried out in flight on specific types. This latter branch has always been one of the principal concerns of t…

Royal Aircraft Factory
The predecessor of the Royal Aircraft Establishment. In the same way that the Admiralty is responsible for the design of warships, it was thought at one time that military aircraft should be Government designed. The Royal Aircraft Factory produced a number of types between 1910 (the prefix Royal was substituted for Army in 1912) and 1917. The best …

Royal Flying Corps
Formed on May 13, 1912, with a Naval wing, a Military wing, a Central Flying School at Upavon, and an Aircraft Factory and 'Park' at Farnborough. The Naval Wing separated in 1914. The Military Wing consisted of three squadrons, No 1 (Airship) and No 2 (Aeroplane) being based at Farnborough, and No 3 (Aeroplane) at Larkhill, Salisbury Plain. At the …

Royal Naval Air Service
Never happy with the RFC, the Naval wing was detached in July, 1914, just before the outbreak of the First World War. The two services were together again as the RAF in 1918 and the Fleet Air Arm was formed in 1923 to look after Naval flying under the RAF. History repeated itself just before the outbreak of the Second World War, when the Royal Navy…

Rudder
A vertical moving surface usually hinged to the sternpost of the fin in the tail unit of an aeroplane. Its functions are to provide directional control and to assist directional stability.

Rudder Bar
The foot control by which the pilot of an aeroplane controls the rudder. It is hinged about its centre and when pushed forward with the left foot yaws the nose to the left and vice versa.

Runway
A prepared track on an aerodrome to facilitate the landing and taking-off of heavily loaded aeroplanes. Runways may be either concrete or metal lattice-work. The former type is more permanent.

Safety-belt
A strong belt of webbing about 4 inches wide with a quick release device which keeps the wearer in his seat in an aeroplane. For violent aerobatics a more elaborate harness is worn.

Sailplane
A high performance glider capable of soaring flight.

Sandstorm
A wind laden with sand or dust which may cover a large area and reduce visibility. Sandstorms frequently held up air operations in the Second World War in North Africa.

Sausage
A colloquial name for the windsock which gives wind direction on an aerodrome. Also applied to the captive observation balloon during the First World War.

SBAC
The Society of British Aircraft Constructors Ltd (nowadays the Society of British Aerospace Companies). A body incorporated in 1916 to foster the collective interests of a rapidly growing aircraft industry. The Society represents every established British manufacturer of aircraft and aero-engines and most of the manufacturers of aeronautical materi…

Scale Effect
In technical language, the effect upon the absolute coefficients of a change in the Reynolds number. In more simple words, the corrections that have to be applied to the results of model tests in a wind tunnel or similar apparatus in order to gain accurate forecasts of the characteristics of the full scale aeroplane which the model represents.

Scarff Ring
A circular rail mounted on the perimeter of an open cockpit of an aeroplane. It carries a frame on runners. The adjustable tube frame mounts one or more light machine-guns.

Scavenge Pump
In a dry sump oil system as used on piston aero-engines, a separate mechanically driven pump drains the sump and returns the lubricant to the oil tank, usually through an oil cooler.

Schneider Trophy
The International Seaplane contest which was won outright by Great Britain in 1931. It originated as a result of the Trophy presented in 1913 by M. Jacques Schneider to the Aero Club of France. The first race was won in 1913 at an average speed of 45·75 m.p.h. and the last at 340·08 m.p.h. The contest had many vicissitudes, including its rescue fro…

Screening
The earthed sheath which surrounds the entire ignition system on an aeroplane to prevent interference with the wireless equipment.

Scud
Ragged pieces of cloud drifting rapidly in a strong wind. Scud is seen during stormy weather.

Sea Breeze
Because land heats more rapidly than water, air moves in from the sea, generally during the day from the heat of the sun.

Sea Dromes
Projected floating airports anchored at sea to assist in the operation of transoceanic airlines.

Sea Marker
A device dropped in the sea to give navigation readings for aircraft.

Seaplane
A generic term covering all aeroplanes which can take off from and alight on the sea. It includes both flying-boats and floatplanes.

Secondary Depression
The small area of low pressure which accompanies a large depression.

Secretary of State for Air
The President of the Air Council, sometimes referred to as the Air Minister, was the political chief of the RAF.

Section
A technical term for the transverse projections of the drawings of flying-boats or floats from which moulds and frames are made. Also used generally to describe a cross-section of an engineering detail, such as an aerofoil.

Segrave Trophy
A trophy awarded annually for the most outstanding British achievement in air, sea or land transport. Sir Henry Segrave, whose memory it commemorates, was a noted figure in British aviation, racing motoring and record motor boating.

Seistan
A strong North wind which blows for about four months in the province of Seistan, Persia (Iran).

Seizing
When an aero-engine suddenly stops as a result of mechanical or lubrication breakdown so that the pistons fuse with the cylinder walls. Before the days of feathering propellers this trouble was usually disastrous, for the revolving blades would either tear the engine to pieces or out of the airframe.

Semi-Rigid Airship
An airship in which the envelope, in addition to maintaining its shape by gas pressure also has a rigid keel. From this keel are suspended the passenger car and driving mechanism.

Separation Point
The point at which the air flow separates from the surface of a body.

Series
The same as the mark of an aeroplane or aero-engine which identifies a particular type.

Service Ceiling
The height at which the rate of climb of an aeroplane falls below 100ft per minute.

Service Load
The total weight of the crew, removable armament, bombs and equipment normally carried in a military aeroplane.

Servo Control
A mechanical or aerodynamic means of supplementing the pilot's physical effort in controlling aircraft.

Sesquiplane
A biplane with a much smaller bottom plane, sometimes called a one-and-a-half plane.

Sextant
An instrument which gives the angular elevation or depression of an object, usually celestial. A bubble sextant uses a bubble to maintain an artificial horizon.

Shamal
A North-Westerly wind in Iraq which causes severe dust storms.

Sheathing
Metal leading-edges to wooden propellers, usually made of brass sheet. They protect the fast-moving edges from damage by rain, gravel, dust and other foreign bodies.

Sheer Lines
The side elevations of a flying-boat hull or float.

Ship Plane
Any aeroplane which is shipborne and can take off from and alight on the deck. 'Take-off' includes catapulting.

Sideslip
The deliberate or involuntary movement of an aeroplane downwards and outwards from its true course. A stable type with adequate keel surface will right itself.

Signal Rocket
A pyrotechnic flare fired from the ground to indicate a landing ground or code signal to aircraft

Signalling Lamp
a portable lamp used for visual signalling either to or from aircraft. The usual type is the Aldis, which has a continuous beam and dipping reflector.

Silencer
A device fitted to the exhaust pipe to reduce engine noise.

Simoon
A hot, dry, southerly wind which blows in North Africa, Syria and Arabia.

Sirocco
A troublesome Mediterranean wind which varies in character as it traverses different terrain. It is usually accompanied by bad visibility.

Skidding
A form of sideslip experienced in flat turns in an aeroplane.

Skin Friction
That portion of drag which is covered by the movement of a fluid (e.g. air) over the surface of a body (e.g. aerofoil). The rougher the surface the greater the skin friction.

Sky-writing and Sky-shouting
The projection of sounds or visual marks into or on the sky for advertising or propaganda purposes. The most familiar form was smoke writing. This was done by specially adapted S.E.5as in clear weather at about 10,000ft by Major Savage, Captain Tait-Cox and others. Sky-shouting was used in Russia from loudspeakers fitted into aircraft.

Slat
An auxiliary aerofoil which runs along the front edge of an aerofoil fitted with Handley Page slots. The hinged slat moves outwards to form the slot.

Sleet
Rain and snow being precipitated together.

Sleeve
A drogue or a windsock.

Slipstream
The stream of air behind a propeller which usually has about 20 per cent greater speed than that of the aeroplane, at every speed.

Slipway
The inclined place used for hauling boat and float seaplanes into and out of the water.

Slot
A narrow air passage running spanwise on an aerofoil, flap, aileron, elevator or rudder. Slots give greater control at critical angles of an aeroplane and act on the principle of smoothing the turbulent wake and so delaying the stall of a surface.

Slow Roll
An aerobatic manoeuvre consisting of a slow revolution about the longitudinal axis.

Slow Running Jet
On a normal carburettor, the by-pass jet which enables an aero-engine to fire steadily at a slow rate of revolutions.

Small End
The small end of a connecting rod which carries the gudgeon-pin and piston in an aero-engine.

Smoke Generators
A pyrotechnic device either for dropping from aircraft to indicate wind direction, or for laying smoke screens from aircraft. A smoke-float is dropped at sea.

Snow
Precipitation in the form of feathery ice crystals.

Soaring
Maintaining free flight without power, usually in a thermal current of ascending air.

Solidity
The ratio of the blade area of a propeller or rotor to the total disc area.

Southerly Burster
A line-squall in East or South-East Australia.

Span
The overall distance from wingtip to wingtip.

Spar
The main longitudinal beam or beams of a wing or control surface. Secondary structures are built around the spar to transfer the load to it, and in the case of wing ribs, also to give correct aerofoil form.

Sparking Plug
The firing device of an internal-combustion engine, consisting of a central electrode, metal points and body, and an insulator of mica or porcelain. In a piston aero-engine there are normally two sparking plugs per cylinder, to ensure even firing and reliability.

Special Areas
Areas over which there are special regulations for flying, such as air bases or military establishments.

Specific Consumption
The quantity of fuel or oil consumed stated in pounds (or pints) per brake horsepower per hour.

Speed
The rate at which a body moves through space. Airspeed is measured on the ASI (Air Speed Indicator) and differs both from the true airspeed and the groundspeed. The true airspeed is the indicated airspeed corrected for variations caused by changes in temperature and pressure. The groundspeed is the true airspeed from which the component caused by t…

Spill
The escape of air at the outer edge of a parachute either from irregularity of descent or intentionally by a pull at one side of the suspension cords. This gives a measure of control over the descent by side-slipping the parachute in the direction of the spill.

Spin
The rotationary movement of an aeroplane around its lateral axis, either in descent or, with extreme power, for a short period in a climb. A spin is usually entered purposely by putting on full upward elevator and full rudder at the same time, or, involuntarily, after a stall when one wing drops. Some aeroplanes will fall into a flat spin from whic…