Aircraft propellers are a vital component of aviation, playing a crucial role in powering both piston and turboprop engines. These spinning blades, often associated with the classic image of a small airplane, are responsible for generating thrust and propelling aircraft through the air. While propellers are an age-old technology, they continue to be used in various aircraft types today, offering unique advantages and disadvantages. 

Aircraft are amazing features of engineering, featuring numerous intricate systems working together to achieve safe and efficient flight. One crucial component in these systems is the power transfer unit (PTU), that of which is often overlooked despite its critical role. 

Transducers play a vital role in converting one form of energy into another for diverse applications, making them essential components in various industries and applications. From measuring temperature to sensing pressure, transducers enable the conversion of physical quantities into electrical signals that can be easily measured and analyzed by various systems. 

All modern aircraft have a braking system that assists with deceleration and stopping on the ground, as well as holding the plane in place during an engine run-up. Though they may work similarly to brakes employed in many automobiles, there are some crucial differences to account for. Firstly, as an oddly shaped vehicle, aircraft typically place their brakes directly on the wheels beneath the vessel body. However, they are usually only fitted to the rear wheels where they can best provide leverage for stopping the vehicle. Aside from their placement, it is also useful for aircraft owners and operators to understand some of the physics behind such braking systems, along with what major types are available when replacements are required.

Across various industry verticals, fasteners are integral components used for securing parts in place during operations, and depending on the specific application, different fastener types should be used. Two of the most common fastener choices are screws and bolts, those of which can be found in virtually any setting, holding vital woods, metals, and other materials together. As they both look similar and provide essentially the same functions, bolts and screws are easy to confuse; however, knowing the difference is key to ensuring you make the best choice for your projects. 

Most modern aircraft are powered by gas turbine engines due to their ability to generate enormous power in a relatively confined space. There are several types of jet engines available, but each of them have some parts they share. One major example are compressors which increase the pressure of incoming air before it enters the burner. Compressing the air before it is mixed with fuel ensures that there is sufficient oxygen to effectively burn mixtures and generate enough force to propel the aircraft while exhausting as little fuel as possible. When considering these compressors, there are two main types: axial compressors and centrifugal compressors. Whereas centrifugal compressors have the air flowing outward perpendicular to the axis of rotation, axial compressors have the air flowing parallel to the axis of rotation. 

When assembling various types of parts together, fasteners are often the components of choice for securing everything. Across a variety of applications and industries, fasteners are devices capable of creating strong and reliable joints, and they typically can be installed, dismantled, and removed without causing damage unless they are a permanent type. As there are many forms of fasteners that one may take advantage of, each with its own capabilities, roles, and limitations, it can be very beneficial to have a basic understanding of the most common types and how they may be used.

Gas turbine engines are started by rotating a high-pressure compressor. In dual-spool, axial flow engines, the high-pressure compressor and N1 turbine system are only rotated by the starter. To start a gas turbine engine, the compressor must be accelerated to provide ample air to support combustion in the combustion section or burners. Once ignition and fuel has been introduced, the starter is tasked with assisting the engine until it reaches a self-sustaining speed. Moreover, the torque supplied by the starter should be more than the torque required to overcome compressor inertia and the engine compressor’s friction loads. 

Hydraulic systems are crucial for the standard operations of many modern aircraft, serving to create the force necessary to manage flight surfaces, landing gear assemblies, and other such systems that are commonly used in each flight operation. In order for hydraulic systems to function as intended, they must be able to effectively control the flow and compression of fluids within an enclosed space, and as such, fluids and fluid system parts need to be kept free of any contaminates or substances that would result in the malfunction or failure of the system. To keep a hydraulic system clean, special hydraulic filter components are relied on.

Control systems are crucial parts of an aircraft, allowing for pilots to quickly and easily adjust attitude for stable flight. While flight control surfaces are highly beneficial, they can be very difficult to manage by oneself if there are no additional systems present to assist with the strength needed to hold surfaces in place when actuated. This is where aircraft trim surfaces come in, those of which allow for the adjustment of one or more control surfaces while alleviating the force required by the pilot to keep them in place. Aircraft trim devices are directly managed by the pilot during flight, and there are various trim surfaces located across the fuselage. In this blog, we will discuss aircraft trims in more detail, allowing you to better understand how they work, as well as the varying surfaces they are located on.

Propellers are a common assembly found on various types of aircraft, and they feature two or more blades protruding radially from a central hub, powered by a motor or an engine. Propeller blades sport both twists and angles for their design, with the slope differing throughout the length so that the blade is moving faster at the tips than the hub. Propeller assemblies work according to the principle of Newton's third law of motion, which states that every action has an equal and opposite reaction, and this is exemplified by the propeller acting like a turning screw. This blog aims to elucidate the minutiae of propeller structures, types, and functions to make their role clearer in aircraft safety and control.

Diaphragm valves acquire their name from the flexible disk that comes in contact with a seat at the top of the valve body to form a seal. Diaphragms are typically recognized for being flexible, pressure responsive elements that transmit force to control a valve. They are related to pinch valves, but utilize an elastomeric diaphragm instead of an elastomeric liner in the valve body to separate the direction of flow from the closure element.

As aircraft are responsible for the lives of both passengers and aircrew, they are equipped with many components, ensuring that they operate optimally. Some of these parts include a set of six basic aircraft instruments that provide critical information to pilots during flight. The six primary aircraft instruments include the attitude indicator (AI), heading indicator (HI), turn coordinator, airspeed indicator, altimeter, and vertical speed indicator (VSI).

Pneumatic systems play a critical role in many industrial and aviation applications. Similar to hydraulic systems, pneumatic systems can be harnessed to distribute large amounts of power with minimal input. With its ubiquity throughout several domains, it is important to understand how these systems work and how they can be applied. In this blog, we will discuss everything you need to know about pneumatic systems and their uses.

While the piston engine has long served a variety of aircraft since the inception of powered flight, the rise of the gas turbine engine in the World War II era radically changed how we approach powered flight. Coming in numerous forms, gas turbine engines rely on the combustion of fuel-and-air mixtures to drive turbine blade assemblies and produce thrust for heavier-than-air flight. As compared to piston engines, the aircraft turbine engine generates a much larger amount of thrust and power, enabling aircraft to be manufactured in larger sizes, operate at higher altitudes, and much more. In this blog, we will provide a brief overview of the most common types of turbine engines, allowing you to find the perfect fit for your individual operations.

An aircraft exhaust system has two important roles. First, it vents poisonous gases away from the engine and fuselage while mitigating noise. Second, it indirectly supplies cabin and carburetor heat. Due to the exhaust system’s exposure to very high temperatures, hydrocarbon fuels continuously burn, leaving excess corrosive residue that builds up and damages components.