Preface to the 2024 Edition

The continuing success of this ebook during 2023, the second year of its release, has been quite remarkable. Student feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, and course adoptions from all over the world continue to increase. Access statistics for 2023 show 109,000 unique visitors to the ebook and over 310,000 unique page (chapter) views, a uniform increase of over 100% since 2022. Over the last year, there was an average of 70 chapter views per hour, with over 4,000 chapter views per hour at peak times.

This 2024 release of the ebook has seen the inevitable round of typographical fixes and other corrections, with numerous updates and some reformatting, including revised and new figures. Some chapters have been better organized regarding content and order, which should help both students and instructors. Additions to the ebook for the 2024 edition include chapters on SI and USC units, unsteady flows, turbulent flows, acoustics and noise, astrodynamics and orbital mechanics, helicopters and VTOL, lighter-than-air (LTA) vehicles, gliders and sailplanes, electric aircraft, and ground-effect aircraft.

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Much success and best wishes in your future studies!

J. Gordon Leishman
Distinguished Professor of Aerospace Engineering, ERAU, Daytona Beach, FL.
Professor Emeritus of Aerospace Engineering, University of Maryland, College Park, MD.

Contact the author via email at Leishman_ebook@erau.edu.