In order to make the aircraft lighter, faster and more stealthy, you can get rid of the movable ailerons and rudders on its wings and tail. This idea was realized by specialists from the famous defense company BAE Systems, who worked together with scientists from the University of Manchester.
Created by their joint efforts, the MAGMA UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) drone maneuvers and changes direction of flight by distributing and controlling the direction of the flow of exhaust gases from its only jet engine.
Instead of ailerons, the trailing edge of the MAGMA drone has a series of narrow slits. Some of the engine exhaust gases are diverted from the general flow and escaped from these slots at supersonic speed. Using the distribution of the exhaust gas flows coming out of the slots at the ends of the wings, it is possible to control the vector of thrust generated by them and change the direction of flight as if conventional ailerons were installed on the wings.
It should be noted that this system is no longer new, BAE Systems used similar thrust vectoring technologies in the DEMON UAV.
But, in addition to replacing the ailerons with variable vector exhaust flows, the MAGMA drone uses a similar method to control the vector of the main flow from a jet engine. A surface with a certain curvature is located behind the engine outlet. Under normal conditions, the flow of exhaust gases "adheres" to this surface and is directed at an angle to the direction of the engine outlet nozzle. This curved "deflecting" surface also has narrow slots through which part of the exhaust gases beats perpendicular to the direction of the main flow, deflecting it to the side. And the stronger the flow of exhaust gases beating from the slots, the greater the angle the main thrust vector generated by the engine is deflected.
“We have already planned a flight test program for the MAGMA drone, which will begin in a few months. And the main goal of this event is to demonstrate the capabilities of the new thrust vectoring technology, which makes it possible to dispense with any moving parts and assemblies, including ailerons,”write the representatives of BAE Systems,“If the tests are successful, we are going to equip the same thrust vectoring system and a full-scale aircraft with a single gas turbine jet engine”.
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