Formulas for Spanwise Distribution of Lift on Aircraft Wings

The discrete numerical solution of the integral equation for total known wing lift as a function of distance along the wing span and of load source (angle of attack) is considered. The integrand is treated as a point on a hyperplane, and a formula for the specification of the solution is derived in terms of two indeterminate vectors. These vectors are shown to correspond to physically significant quantities which can be computed or measured beforehand, and also to be useful in approximations when aerodynamic data are not available. The formula is applied to the estimation of the spanwise lift distribution for a wing at subsonic speeds and different values of total lift. The formula is considered to be a simple means of achieving accurate design estimates in a wide range of engineering approximations of detailed function distributions from their definite integrals.