Payload fairing structure of any launch vehicle protects the payload from t
he adverse aerodynamic environments besides providing the forward surface.
This structure is separated from the core vehicle as soon as the purpose is
served. The elastic response of this structure due to the separation force
is very important to be considered along with rigid body movements. The bo
at tail structural element configuration is decided based on the dimensions
of the core vehicle and the mission requirements. The displacement respons
e due to separation force of the payload fairing for different boat tail an
gles is an important input data required to finalise the boat tail angle an
d the payload fairing configuration in total. Finite element method is empl
oyed using three noded triangular plate and shell element and 3D beam eleme
nt in conjunction with a mode superposition technique to carry out this stu
dy for a typical payload fairing. The contribution of the elastic response
on the radial gap between the payload envelope and the separated fairing is
also reported including a payload fairing configuration without boat tail
structure.