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Through research and test work, the aircraft industry has gained a better knowledge of the design parameters which influence the noise produced by light propeller driven aircraft. The parameters found to have a major affect on the noise include: propeller tip speed, propeller blade tip thickness, and engine exhaust system characteristics. To date, many special design considerations such as geared or shrouded propellers have not proven effective in reducing noise levels. When developing an aircraft for reduced noise, its cost, performance, and utility must be considered.

The Cessna Citation CJ4, certified on March 12, 2010, is believed to be the first civil aircraft with a Lithium Ion main battery. The 26.4VDC, 44Ah Lithium Ion main battery weighs 54 lbs, a 35% weight saving over a Nickel-Cadmium battery. Using phosphate-based Lithium Ion cells, which have no positive feedback thermal runaway failure mode, system integration of the battery and aircraft architecture design is simpler. Electronics and software are needed to optimize life only, not to ensure safety. Emergency discharge with failed electronics is enabled with the selection of a less volatile chemistry, the use of an analog Module Management System for cell balancing and protection, and the use of a microcontroller-based digital Central Monitoring System that reports health. System safety failure hazard assessment is considered Major, and the battery software is certified to the requirements of RTCA DO-178B, Design Assurance Level C.

A brief description is given of one approach taken by a manufacturer of light business and personal aircraft to the flutter analysis of propeller whirl flutter, twin-boom aircraft, T-tail configuration, servo tabs, and all-moving tail. Effects of structural variations that may occur in the service life of an aircraft are presented, and the effect of ice formation on control surfaces is discussed.

Flight test experiments were conducted to measure the extent and nature of natural laminar flow on a smoothed test region of a swept-wing business jet wing. Surface hot film aneraometry and sublimating chemicals were used for transition detection. Surface pressure distributions were measured using pressure belts. Engine noise was monitored by a microphone attached to the wing surface to study possible acoustic effects on stability of the laminar boundary layer, Side-slip conditions were flown to simulate changes in effective wing sweep. Flight instrumentation and ground data analysis techniques and a method for measuring intermittency of turbulence are described, Correlation was obtained between the hot film gage signals and chemicals for transition detection. Cross-flow vortices were observed for some flight conditions. Results of spectral and statistical analysis of the hot film signals for various flight test conditions are presented.