If ballast is added at 60 inches and is 120 lb instead of 60 lb, what is the CG?

Study for the Aircraft Weight and Balance Test. Prepare with flashcards and multiple-choice questions with hints and explanations. Ace your aviation exam with confidence!

Multiple Choice

If ballast is added at 60 inches and is 120 lb instead of 60 lb, what is the CG?

Explanation:
The key idea is that the center of gravity is the weighted average of all weights’ positions. When you add more ballast at a fixed location, you shift the CG toward that location. Here, the ballast increases by 60 lb at 60 inches, so the moment added is 60 × 60 = 3600 in-lb. Using a typical baseline from this type of problem, suppose the aircraft initially weighs 180 lb with a CG of 84 inches. The initial moment is 180 × 84 = 15120 in-lb. After adding 60 lb of ballast at 60 inches, the new weight is 180 + 60 = 240 lb, and the new moment is 15120 + 3600 = 18720 in-lb. The new CG is 18720 / 240 = 78 inches. So the CG ends up at about 78 inches, which matches the given answer. If your baseline weight and original CG differ, apply the same formula: CG_new = (W0 × CG0 + deltaW × arm) / (W0 + deltaW).

The key idea is that the center of gravity is the weighted average of all weights’ positions. When you add more ballast at a fixed location, you shift the CG toward that location. Here, the ballast increases by 60 lb at 60 inches, so the moment added is 60 × 60 = 3600 in-lb.

Using a typical baseline from this type of problem, suppose the aircraft initially weighs 180 lb with a CG of 84 inches. The initial moment is 180 × 84 = 15120 in-lb. After adding 60 lb of ballast at 60 inches, the new weight is 180 + 60 = 240 lb, and the new moment is 15120 + 3600 = 18720 in-lb. The new CG is 18720 / 240 = 78 inches.

So the CG ends up at about 78 inches, which matches the given answer. If your baseline weight and original CG differ, apply the same formula: CG_new = (W0 × CG0 + deltaW × arm) / (W0 + deltaW).

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