Distinctive Features of the Flow past a Flight Vehicle Integrated with an Air-Breathing Engine at High Supersonic Velocities

The aerodynamic characteristics and distinctive features of the flow past hypersonic integral-layout flight vehicles with air-breathing engines intended for cruising atmospheric flight are experimentally investigated. The experiments were conducted on a simplified model designed with regard for the general principles of integration for vehicles of the class considered. The tests were run in a high-speed supersonic wind tunnel over the Mach and Reynolds number ranges 4 M 9 and 10⁵ Re₀ 10⁶.Balance testing was conducted, the pressure distributions over the vehicle surface were measured, the flowfield parameters were determined using a moving total-pressure tube, and flow shadowgraphs were obtained. The measured data are compared with the results of the calculations for three-dimensional inviscid flows. The effects of mounting a nacelle and contouring the internal duct are considered. The effect of the corrections on the duct flow in the absence of jet modeling is estimated.