Vc
Encyclopedia : V : VC : VC : Vc
The VC of an aircraft is the V speed which refers to the velocity of cruising. VC is within the green arc on many airspeed indicators. This speed specific to the aircraft model.
VC is also called the design cruising speed or the optimum cruise speed – the latter being the speed giving the most velocity (i.e greatest distance/time) from a litre of fuel, usually utilising 75% power at Maximum Take-Off Weight (MTOW) and about 1.3 times the maximum lift-to-drag ratio (L/D) speed – Vbr above. The speed and power required decrease as the aircraft weight decreases from MTOW.
For normal category aircraft FAR part 23 specifies a minimum design cruising speed (in knots) based on the wing loading of 33 √ W/S (weight in pounds divided by wing area in square feet). For utility category the minimum design cruising speed is 36 √ W/S. Many ultralight aeroplanes are unable to comply with the FAR part 23 requirement for a minimum design cruising speed.
From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.