In many beginners' books like Raymer's and Roncz's the parasitic drag coefficient is estimated directly as a total value based on wetted area to wing area ratio and an empirical coefficient for the specific aircraft category like tube and fabric, smooth etc. Does it make sense to break it down and use separate drag coefficients for different parts as the wing Cd for example is well known or can be easily found using the appropriate software?
TLDR: Why the proposed method is to calculate all drag coefficients relative the the wing area then sum them instead of summing drag forces?
TLDR: Why the proposed method is to calculate all drag coefficients relative the the wing area then sum them instead of summing drag forces?
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