What is a Flight Control System?
A flight control system is an interconnected network of controls which allows a pilot to fly an aircraft. There are a number of different styles of flight control system, ranging from the basic to the extremely complex, and refinements to these systems are constantly being designed to make aircraft safer and easier to fly. Much like the pedals and steering wheel in a car, flight control systems allow pilots to control the speed and direction of their aircraft, and a whole lot more, so that they can bring a plane safely from point A to point B.
A flight control system is an interconnected network of controls which allows a pilot to fly an aircraft. There are a number of different styles of flight control system, ranging from the basic to the extremely complex, and refinements to these systems are constantly being designed to make aircraft safer and easier to fly. Much like the pedals and steering wheel in a car, flight control systems allow pilots to control the speed and direction of their aircraft, and a whole lot more, so that they can bring a plane safely from point A to point B. The earliest flight control systems were purely mechanical. To do something like move the flaps on a plane, the pilot would pull a lever attached to a wire which would physically pull the flaps in the direction the pilot desired. Eventually, aircraft designers developed hydromechanical systems, which boosted the system with hydraulics to make it easier to operate. Hydromechanical systems also included innovations such as springs which provided fe