Lift-induced Drag - Calculation of Induced Drag

Calculation of Induced Drag

For a wing with an elliptical lift distribution, induced drag is calculated as follows:

where

and

Thus

Hence

Where:

is the aspect ratio,
is the induced drag coefficient (see Lifting-line theory),
is the lift coefficient,
is the induced drag,
is the wing span efficiency value by which the induced drag exceeds that of an elliptical lift distribution, typically 0.85 to 0.95,
is the lift,
is the gross wing area: the product of the wing span and the Mean Aerodynamic Chord.
is the true airspeed,
is the equivalent airspeed,
is the air density and
is 1.225 kg/m³, the air density at sea level, ISA conditions.

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