What is a Pitot Probe?

The Pitot Probe ("Pitot Head" or total-pressure tube) is a tubular device used to measure total pressure. The device is named after its inventor, Henri Pitot (1695-1771), a hydraulic engineer and member of the French Academy of Science, who called his 1732 discovery "A Machine for the Measurement of Velocity of Flowing Water." The total pressure measured by the Pitot Probe, in conjunction with static pressure measurements, is used to derive impact pressure. Impact pressure is then used to determine flight-critical information such as airspeed, true airspeed, and Mach number.

Because the velocity of air and water, both scientifically classified as liquids, are measured in much the same manner, Henri Pitot's invention is used today for the measurement of speed in boats and ships, fluids flowing in pipes and channels, and air flow in ducts as well as the airspeed of aircraft.

In the early 1940s, Aero-Instruments led the way in developing electrical heating elements for the U.S. Navy in order to provide reliable pressure (airspeed) indications under high altitude and cold weather icing conditions. Today, Aero-Instruments products are in daily use on thousands of general, business, commercial and military aircraft and helicopters commercial aircraft, military aircraft, business jets, general aviation, rotorcraft and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles.

Useful References:
Military Specification MIL-P-26292 (USAF)
"Pilot and Static Pressure Systems, Installation and Inspection Of"
NASA Reference Publication 1046
"Measurement of Aircraft Speed and Altitude," Wm. Gracey, May 1980 #N80-24296