Wind Tunnel Wall Corrections: 2nd Edition

The first edition of AGARDograph 336 (1998) was compiled by an international team of wall correction experts to present the state of the art with special emphasis given to transonic methods and modern wall corrections based on CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics). It was planned by the AGARD Fluid Dynamics Panel (FDP) as a modern supplement of AGARDograph 109 (1966), a compilation of classical “Subsonic Wind Tunnel Wall Corrections”. Both AGARDographs, separated by a generation, were well-received and they are still highly referenced documents. This second edition of AGARDograph 336 (2026) was planned by the Applied Vehicle Technology (AVT) Panel as another generational update. A multi-national team, including some of the original authors, was again assembled to review and report the state of the art.

Significant changes have occurred in technology, the primary example being that the world is now digital. Computers are integrated into almost every process in the wind tunnel, in the instrumentation, in the test articles, and in the communication systems. The facilities are getting laser-based geometry scans to create digital twins, enabling simulation with advanced numerical methods. In addition to their traditional role as an aerodynamic testing environment, the wind tunnel system itself, both with and without the test article, has become a validation model for modern CFD. Computational and experimental modelling and simulation methods are increasingly being integrated into and coupled with the design and development process and
impacting modern aerospace vehicles throughout their lifecycle.

Ever-tighter uncertainty specifications are being placed on wind tunnel test data as today’s objectives. Along with improved performance, reduced costs, and safety, these objectives now include environmental concerns for enhanced efficiency with reduced Carbon and Acoustic Footprints. As with the first edition, the matter of wind tunnel wall corrections is not completely resolved, but further developments are confidently expected. The wind tunnel will continue to play an important role as one of the two main tools of aeroplane aerodynamics development still for a long time in the future. New requirements for wind tunnel testing, new ideas about wind tunnel wall design, new understanding of wind tunnel wall influence and advanced numerical fluid dynamics codes on more powerful computers will initiate new developments in the field of wind tunnel wall corrections in the future.