In flight mechanics, the “angle of sideslip,” often denoted as “β” (beta), refers to the angle between the longitudinal axis of an aircraft and its actual flight path through the air. This angle describes how much the aircraft’s heading deviates from the direction it’s moving through the air.
- β: Angle of sideslip, which is the angle between the longitudinal axis of the aircraft and its actual flight path.
- sin^(-1): The inverse sine function, also known as arcsine, which gives you an angle whose sine is the provided ratio.
- v: The lateral (sideways) component of the aircraft’s velocity vector.
- |V|: The magnitude of the aircraft’s total velocity vector, which represents the overall speed of the aircraft through the air.