Patent ID: 8157207

Claim:
An aircraft system, comprising: a pylon having a first side, a second side facing opposite the first side, and a heat shield having a first edge proximate to the first side of the pylon and a second edge proximate to the second side of the pylon; and a jet engine exhaust nozzle carried by the pylon and having an internal flow surface adjacent a hot exhaust flow path, the internal flow surface having an exit aperture with a perimeter that includes multiple projections extending in an aft direction and circumferentially spaced about the perimeter, with a geometric feature of the multiple projections changing in a monotonic manner along at least a portion of the perimeter, wherein a first projection nearest the first side of the pylon and a second projection nearest the second side of the pylon are both oriented inwardly into the flow path by a greater amount than the remaining projections, and wherein at least a portion of the first projection is positioned circumferentially outwardly from the first edge of the heat shield and at least a portion of the second projection is positioned circumferentially outwardly from the second edge of the heat shield.