Is agility implicit in flying qualities?

Agility is addressed from the standpoint of military specifications and standards. Aircraft response characteristics are detailed and mapped into MIL-STD-1797-A, Flying Qualities of Piloted Aircraft. Based on current literature, several agile responses are discussed. A mapping is then made of the agile responses into the flying qualities specification in order to determine if agility can be partially or totally specified within the framework of ML-STD-1797A. It is shown that any maneuver may be broken down into its component parts, which may then be mapped into the appropriate paragraphs or sections of the specification to establish specific requirements and verification criteria. The recommended values may be inserted into the requirements paragraphs, or the individual requirements may be tailored as desired for the subject aircraft. If an agile maneuver can be described, it may also be dissected and its component parts specified; the appropriate agile numbers and verification criteria are simply inserted into the existing structure of the flying qualities specification