Bird Flight Performance

The mechanical approach to flight energetics - the aeronautical approach, power required and power available, uses and limitations of the programs; variables needed for flight calculations - dimensions and units, standard measurements, work, power and metabolic rate; power required for horizontal flight - synthesis of the power curve, fuel consumption in relation to distance; BASIC programs for flight calculations - using a pre-recorded program disc; fuel consumed on short and long flights, transferring the programs to other computers, entering the programs from the listings, testing and debugging; the reality behind the power calculations - Reynolds number and the concept of scale, drag and drag coefficient, profile power and the flow around wings, induced power and vortex wakes; gliding performance calculations - fixed span glide polar, gliding performance with variable wing span, soaring; power available from the muscles - work and power output of the myofibrils, power output of aerobic muscles, scaling of power available and power required, cost of maintaining a steady force; example calculations with the BASIC programs - checking program 1 against physiological results; other problems involving fuel consumption, problems involving mechanical power only, gliding and soaring, scale effects with Program 1, further uses of the programs. Appendices: program listings and specimen output; units and dimensions; list of symbols; some properties of the standared atmosphere.