Near-Body/Cartesian Off-Body Simulations for C-17 and Extraction Parachute
Keith Bergeron, Mehdi Ghoreyshi, Emily Larsen, Adam Jirásek, Terence M. Rose, Gregory M. Noetscher
Abstract
This paper presents preliminary computational simulations of airdrop extraction with coupled airdrop system components including an extraction chute from a high-fidelity C-17 aircraft configuration. The aircraft configuration includes ramp and flaps deployed, engine modeling, and asymmetric body. Static and dynamic time-accurate, unsteady CFD simulations are completed. Several meshes, including use of adaptive mesh refinement are evaluated, and results are verified with respect to extraction chute location. The extraction chute drag coefficient observed in the aircraft wake simulations correlates with documented values for the ringslot parachute model. The results contribute to a continuing computational effort to understand the flow field characteristics of C-17 aircraft configured for airdrop operations, and they serve as a baseline for future investigations.