Take-off weight
The maximum take-off weight ( English maximum take off weight , MTOW ; official: maximum take-off mass , engl. Maximum take-off mass , MTOM , or Maximum take off weight ), the maximum take off weight of aircraft . This is the mass with which the aircraft can take off without violating the prescribed safety margins. The MTOW is determined on the basis of constructive criteria as part of the type certification . The world record is 640 t, held by the Antonov An-225 .
Classification
Aircraft classes
According to the MTOW, aircraft are classified internationally, with different national classes :
- Ultralight aircraft (D) (up to 472.5 kg MTOW, sport pilot license (SPL) required)
- Ultralight class (international) (up to 544/560 kg MTOW, corresponds to German ultralight aircraft)
- Light Sport Aircraft (LSA) (USA / planned to be launched in Europe) (600 kg MTOW), Light Aircraft Pilot License (LAPL) required
- VLA (Very light airplane - light aircraft ) (international / D) (up to 750 kg MTOW, private pilot's license (PPL) required)
- Light aircraft up to 5.7 t MTOW (international / D) (private pilot license required).
- For heavier aircraft, specific type-dependent authorizations ( type rating ) must be acquired, which must be entered in the corresponding pilot license.
It can happen that the MTOW is "artificially" reduced due to licensing regulations. B. were designed for the US market, often have an MTOW of 600 kg in order to fully exhaust the limitations of the local LSA class. However, since they do not meet the German requirements for light aircraft up to 2 t MTOW ("Echo Class"), they could only be certified there as microlight aircraft for a long time - with the penalty that the technically possible 600 kg for the type certification was 472.5 kg were reduced. The European LSA class is intended to remedy this in the future.
Wake vortex categories
The wake vortex category of an aircraft is also based on the maximum take-off weight , on which the safety distance to be maintained for aircraft behind depends.
- MTOW under 7 t: L - Light
- MTOW 7 t to 136 t: M - medium
- MTOW over 136 t: H - Heavy
Maximum allowed take off weight
In addition to the structural restrictions, depending on the situation, other factors can influence the weight with which a safe start is possible. One then speaks of maximum allowed take off weight , MATOW , or maximum allowed take off mass , Matom (in the German literature as Maximum permissible starting weight and Maximum off mass hereinafter). Factors that reduce the MATOW are, for example:
- the take-off takes place from an airfield that is high above sea level (e.g. Quito )
- there are high air temperatures, e.g. B. in summer in the Arab region up to 50 ° C
- there is only a very short runway available
- there are aviation obstacles in departure
The MATOW (but not the MTOW) can be increased through the use of booster rockets or aircraft catapults .
See also
Individual evidence
- ↑ The LuftVZO uses the term maximum take-off mass in the sense of MTOM, not in the sense of MATOM
- ↑ a b Joachim Scheiderer: Applied flight performance - An introduction to operational flight performance from take-off to landing . Springer-Verlag, 2008, ISBN 978-3-540-72722-4 , doi : 10.1007 / 978-3-540-72724-8 .
- ↑ An example of this is the Remos GX : Technical data of the Remos GX ( Memento from March 26, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) on the manufacturer's website, accessed on April 29, 2013
- ↑ Not to be confused with the use of the term in the LuftVZO in the sense of MTOM