Vortex Flow Aerodynamics – Online Short Course (Starts 3 March 2026) 3 March 2026 - 26 March 2026 Online

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Vortex Flow Aerodynamics – Online Short Course (Starts 3 March 2026)


  • From 3–26 March 2026 (4 Weeks, 8 Classes, 16 Total Hours) 
  • Every Tuesday and Thursday at 1–3 p.m. Eastern Time (all sessions will be recorded and available for replay; course notes will be available for download) 
  • This new unique course focuses on the aerodynamic properties of vortex flows.
  • All students will receive an AIAA Certificate of Completion at the end of the course.

OVERVIEW
Concentrated vortex flows are characterized by coherent vorticity created from the highly swept edges of a lifting surface on an aircraft. This coherent vorticity can be exploited to improve aerodynamic performance, and such use of these flows is referred to as vortex-flow aerodynamics. Key technical topics for the Vortex Flow Aerodynamics course include concentrated vortex flow physics, aircraft applications of concentrated vortex flows, CFD methodologies for simulating concentrated vortex flows, a state-of-the-art assessment for prediction of concentrated vortex flow aerodynamics, and opportunities to advance the understanding of and simulation confidence for concentrated vortex flow aerodynamics. The course will touch upon an approach that merges a physics-based perspective of the concentrated vortex flows with a systems engineering viewpoint of the air vehicle.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

  • Grasp the uses of concentrated vortex flows for aircraft aerodynamics
  • Comprehend the fundamental flow physics and properties of concentrated vortex flows
  • Discern the strengths and weaknesses for simulation of concentrated vortex flows from a hierarchy of computational fluid dynamic techniques
  • Become aware of opportunities for new research to improve the ability to use concentrated vortex flows for vehicle aerodynamics

AUDIENCE
This course is intended for holders of a BS degree in aeronautical/aerospace engineering who have had coverage of basic aerodynamic subjects but who have not had any significant exposure to vortex flow aerodynamics. These audience members might be new graduates or experienced engineers who want to learn about the basic role concentrated vortex flows play in aircraft aerodynamic performance. Course participants should be able to perform basic Computational Fluid Dynamics simulations and/or basic wind tunnel experimentation pertinent to aircraft aerodynamics, although these topics will be reviewed within the course. Audience members with added interest in maneuver aerodynamics and separated flow management can use this course to prepare for those more advanced topics.

COURSE FEES (Sign-In To Register)
– AIAA Member Price: $945 USD
– AIAA Student Member Price: $595 USD
– Non-Member Price: $1145 USD

Classroom Hours / CEUs: 16 classroom hours, 1.6 CEU/PDH

Cancellation Policy: A refund less a $50.00 cancellation fee will be assessed for all cancellations made in writing prior to 7 days before the start of the event. After that time, no refunds will be provided.

Contact: Please contact Lisa Le or Customer Service if you have questions about the course or group discounts (for 5+ participants).

Frequently Asked Questions

Outline
  • Introduction – Scope of material, Learning objectives, Approach, Organization
  • Terminology
    • Concentrated vortex flow
    • Modeling & Simulation (M&S)
    • Verification & Validation (V&V)
    • Systems engineering
  • Aircraft Applications of Concentrated Vortex Flows
    • Military
    • Commercial
    • Systems engineering and flow physics perspectives
  • Elemental Flow Physics of Concentrated Vortex Flows
    • Flow physics components
    • Flow physics manifestations
  • M&S Technology for Concentrated Vortex Flows
    • Hierarchy of methods
    • Consequences for concentrated vortex flows
  • State of Art Assessment: Fundamental Vortical Flow Simulations
    • Steady flows
    • Unsteady flows
  • State of Art Assessment: Configuration Application Capabilities
    • Subcomponent-scale vortices
    • Component-scale vortices
    • Subsystem- and system-scale vortices
  • Key Inferences from state-of-the-art assessment
    • Fundamental vortical flow simulations
    • Configuration applications
  • Path Forward for Improved Understanding and Simulation of Concentrated Vortex Flows
    • Context for simulation advancements
    • Insights from new physical and numerical experiments
    • M&S process Improvements
    • Summary comments
  • Concluding Remarks
Materials

Course Delivery and Materials

  • The course lectures will be delivered via Zoom.
  • All sessions will be available on-demand within 1-2 days of the lecture. Once available, you can stream the replay video anytime, 24/7. All slides will be available for download after each lecture.
  • No part of these materials may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted, unless for course participants. All rights reserved.
  • Between lectures, the instructors will be available via email for technical questions and comments.
Instructors


Dr. James (Jim) Luckring is now an Emeritus Langley Associate affiliated with the NASA Langley Research Center where he retired after 49 years of service directing and conducting aerodynamic research pertinent to a wide range of fixed-wing aircraft concepts. He has also made scientific contributions and provided leadership to numerous NATO activities over a 48-year period, has 18 years of experience teaching graduate level classes in aerodynamics, and is the author or co-author of over 100 scientific publications for numerous organizations and professional societies. Dr. Luckring earned B.S. and M.S degrees in Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering from Purdue University as well as a Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering from North Carolina State University. His career has included extensive study of vortex flows, and he is a Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society as well as an Associate Fellow of the AIAA.


Dr. Arthur (Art) Rizzi is an Emeritus Professor of Aeronautics and one of the founding members of the Center for Computational Mathematics and Mechanics at KTH. From 2006-2010 he was the Coordinator for the EU-Funded Framework 6 Project SimSAC: Simulating Aircraft Stability and Control Characteristics for use in Conceptual Design. Dr. Rizzi is a graduate of Stanford University where he earned his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Applied Mechanics; his B.S. degree is from the Pennsylvania State University. He currently serves on the Board of Editors for the journal Progress in Aerospace Sciences. He is co-author of the monograph Separated and Vortical Flow in Aircraft Wing Aerodynamics and lead author of the textbook Aircraft Aerodynamic Design with Computational Software. Dr. Rizzi has previously worked in the Computational Fluid Dynamics Branch of NASA Ames Research Center, and in the Aerodynamics Department of the Aeronautical Research Institute of Sweden (FFA). He is an Associate Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics and a Fellow of the Institute of Mathematics and its Applications.

 

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