Undercarriage
The selected design makes use of an unconventional undercarriage configuration in order to maximise performance in other areas. More conventional configurations such as a taildragger or a glider-like inline configuration are either not possible due to the absence of a tail or the low stability and manoeuvrability whilst on the ground. A tricycle style configuration has been chosen, however, the main gear is mounted on the wingtips in order to maximise ground stability. With the main properties of a flying wing designed to maximise lift and minimise drag, it is important that additional components are implemented such that they interfere as little as possible with these goals. To support this, the main gear are to be integrated into the wingtip vertical stabilisers, minimising additional profile drag from supporting structure. With the main gear being mounted on the tips, it is important to consider the structural loads during landing and ensure the bending moment is not too large. As the aircraft is a semi-monocoque design, the impact should be sufficiently distributed throughout the aircraft.
The nose wheel is approximately 55 forward of the CG position; this is in line with recommendations from Scott, 2004 and ensures there is ideal weight distribution between front and main gear.
Commonly, in commercial and general aviation, the main gear are positioned such that they lie approximately 15 ° behind the CG [Raymer, 2018]. This is to facilitate easier initial rotation and reduce the risk of uncontrolled rotation resulting in a tail-strike. While the same considerations could be applied to this design, the absence of a tail or any aircraft components rear of the undercarriage means that the 15 requirement can be relaxed and instead the CG location optimised for in-flight stability.