Introduction to Fly-by-Wire Flight Control Systems: The professional pilot’s guide to understanding modern aircraft controls

Most new aircraft have fly-by-wire flight controls systems. Although an aircraft manual tells pilots "what" to do, the questions of "why and how it works" are not explained in an easily understood way.

Is it possible to explain how fly-by-wire flight control systems work, without any math or complicated wiring diagrams? This book describes the fundamentals of aircraft fly-by-wire designs in an approachable way for professional pilots, aviation enthusiasts, and aspiring aerospace engineers.

Knowledge of fly-by-wire principles gives professional pilots an advantage to apply the flight manual procedures for their aircraft. This is not an engineering textbook and there will be no math! Rather than describe a particular aircraft’s design, it explains general concepts from a pilot's perspective. The math to design these advanced systems is complicated, but the strategies underlying modern aircraft designs are easily described and understood. 

Readers will learn:

• Problems with mechanical/cable flight control designs
• Why are four computers better than one or two?
• Advantages of fly-by-wire and popular control laws
• What sensors are needed, and why
• Design considerations for risk mitigation

Buy this book to read on your next layover!

The material covered in this book is also now available as an interactive course from Daedalus Aerospace:

https://www.daedalusaero.space/courses/fly-by-wire