Effects Of Runway Grooving On Aircraft Tire Spin-up Behavior
SUMMARY
An experimental study was conducted to compare the spin-up behavior of an aircraft tire during touchdown on grooved surfaces with the corresponding behavior on similar ungrooved surfaces. The study involved the impact of 49 X 17, type VII aircraft tires at several inflation pressures upon dry grooved and ungrooved concrete and asphalt surfaces at ground speeds up to approximately 110 knots. The results of this study indicate that grooving a runway generally reduces wheel spin-up time but does not appreciably affect the maximum wheel spin-up drag loads, at least for the ground speeds of these tests. Tire-tread damage in the form of chevron cutting was observed on the grooved surfaces under some test conditions and appeared to be dependent upon ground speed, tire inflation pressure, and the runway surface material.