The flutter analysis of composite panels in supersonic flow has been performed by the finite element method based on the shear deformable theory. The present finite element method for composite laminates is easily applied to the arbitrary plate geometry and flow direction. The computational results of the vibration and flutter analysis are obtained using a 9-node isoparametric, shear deformable plate element. The degrees of freedom at each node are one vertical displacement and two rotations about two perpendicular in-plane axes. The results of the present method agree well with those given in the available references. Guyan reduction procedure and the normal mode method are used to reduce the computational time. Flutter boundaries (critical dynamic pressure and its frequency) have been obtained for both cross-ply and angle-ply composite plates. Also, the flutter analysis has been performed for both rectangular and trapezoidal plates with clamped and simply supported edges. It is found that the influence of the panel geometry, its length ratio, the flow direction and the fiber orientation greatly affect the flutter boundaries of laminated plates. The effect of aerodynamic damping on the flutter boundaries for composite plates is also discussed.
