RAeS Lanchester Named Lecture 2024: Frederick W. Lanchester and 'Aerodynamics'

So much has been written about Frederick W. Lanchester over the years it is hard to imagine finding something new to discuss about his efforts in aerodynamics. Many of the previous Lanchester Memorial Lectures discussed topics such as wing aerodynamics, aircraft concepts and design, unsteady rotor aerodynamics, aerodynamics research, and a wide variety of other related aerodynamic topics. However, there has never been a lecture about Lanchester’s book 'Aerodynamics' as a tool for aerodynamics education in the 20th century. The lecture will discuss his book relative to other aerodynamics books before and after 1907, and discover how Lanchester’s book had a very distinct, and important, contribution to make to aerodynamic education.
Russell M. Cummings graduated from California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly) with a B.S. and M.S. in Aeronautical Engineering before receiving his Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Southern California; he also received a B.A. in Music from Cal Poly. He is currently Professor of Aeronautics at the U.S. Air Force Academy and Director of the Hypersonic Vehicle Simulation Institute. Previously he was Professor of Aerospace Engineering at Cal Poly, where he also served as department chairman for four years. He worked for eight years at Hughes Aircraft Company in the Missile Systems Group as a missile aerodynamicist, and completed a National Research Council postdoctoral research fellowship at NASA Ames Research Center, working on the computation of high angle-of-attack flowfields. He is a Fellow of RAeS and AIAA.

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Fabulous lecture by a true authority on aerodynamics and education!