Full pressure height

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The full pressure altitude indicates the maximum flight altitude up to which a supercharged aircraft engine can maintain a certain boost pressure without taking into account the dynamic pressure generated during flight . This is adjusted to the respective flight altitude by adjusting the compression ratio of the loader until the full pressure altitude is reached. The available engine poweris therefore independent of the flight altitude within certain limits, i. H. The "full boost pressure" and thus the full engine output is available up to the full pressure level. Above the full pressure altitude, however, there is an increasing loss of power with increasing flight altitude, because the charger can no longer compensate for the drop in air pressure and the decreasing filling level means that less and less air is available to the engine for burning the fuel .

In order to achieve a high full pressure level in piston engines , turbochargers are mainly used today , which are relatively small and light and work very efficiently because they use the exhaust energy of the engine for charging. In military aircraft in particular , mechanical superchargers were also used up until the 1950s , the compressors of which were often driven by a switchable gearbox to achieve a high full pressure head .

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