Digital Datcom

The United States Air Force Digital Datcom is a computerized version of the USAF Data Compendium, a large collection of information used by aerospace engineers to predict airplane stability and handling properties. Digital Datcom takes an input file containing a geometric description of an airplane, and outputs its corresponding dimensionless stability derivatives. These numbers can be used to calculate meaningful aspects of flight dynamics.

The program is written in Fortran, and is attributed to engineers at the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base.

When compared with modern methods of computational fluid dynamics, digital datcom may seem antiquated. However, in its day, the program was an advanced estimation tool, and certainly much faster than plowing through pages and pages of engineering texts.