Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
2. INTERNATIONAL WARSAW SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH AND INNOVATION CONGRESS, Warszawa, Polonya, 25 - 26 Ocak 2026, ss.68-91, (Tam Metin Bildiri)
High-altitude operations of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) provide significant advantages such as extended mission endurance, wide-area coverage, and persistent surveillance capability, thereby rendering Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) and High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) class platforms strategically important systems. However, the unique physical characteristics of the high-altitude environment, which include low air density, varying temperature and pressure profiles, reduced Reynolds numbers, and moderate Mach numbers, also introduce substantial engineering challenges in terms of aerodynamic, propulsion, and overall system performance. This study addresses the effects of high-altitude operations on UAVs from a holistic engineering perspective and aims to evaluate this subject within an interdisciplinary framework, which has predominantly been examined in a fragmented manner in the existing literature. In this context, the physical characteristics of the high-altitude environment and their effects on aerodynamic forces, flow regimes, and Reynolds and Mach numbers are investigated based on their physical and mathematical foundations. While the advantages of high-altitude flight, such as low drag potential, high lift-to-drag ratios, long-endurance loiter capability, and wide-area coverage, are discussed in detail, the associated disadvantages are analyzed from an engineering standpoint. These include boundary layer behavior, flow separation, reductions in thrust generation, thermal management challenges, structural flexibility, and limitations in energy storage. In addition, engineering strategies aimed at mitigating these limitations are discussed within the framework of aerodynamic design, propulsion and energy systems, and system-level optimization approaches, supported by computational fluid dynamics (CFD), response surface methodology (RSM), and multidisciplinary optimization techniques. The present study demonstrates that high altitude represents not only an operational opportunity for UAVs but also a multidimensional engineering problem that must be carefully managed. Accordingly, it provides designers and researchers with a physics-based, comprehensive, and guiding technical framework for the design and analysis of high-altitude UAV systems.