MACE | Modern Air Combat Environment

MACEuses an energy-based aerodynamic model for aircraft flight.

Specific Excess Power (Ps) is the primary driver for describing an aircraft’s flight performance.

At positive values of Ps an aircraft is free to turn, climb or accelerate, when Ps is negative an aircraftis forced to decelerate or dive or a combination of both.

Ps is also useful to depict an aircraft’s speed-altitude envelope;if Ps has reached zero, the aircraft can neitherclimb nor accelerate, andthus the aircraft has reached eitherits ceiling or maximum level velocity. When an aircraft maneuvers, it retrieves the specific excess power of the aircraft at its current altitude, Mach number, and g-loading. It then initiates a climb angle, turn angle, and rate of acceleration based onits specific excess power data-tables.

As the aircraft’s altitude, speed, and loading changes, its energy state changes as well.The Energy model continuously retrieves the available excess power and adjusts its climb angle, turn angle, and rate of acceleration to reflect the new energy state.

An energy based aerodynamic model is a good balance between reasonably-close aircraft performance and limited CPU usage when trying to simulate large numbers of constructive forces.

The final equation yields a relatively easy means of developing data tables that incorporate the necessary parameters (i.e. thrust, weight, drag, load factor, wing area, Mach number, and dynamic pressure) to produce accurate Psdata.