The nonlinear dynamics of a cracked rotor system in an aircraft maneuvering with constant velocity or acceleration was investigated. The influence of the aircraft climbing angle on the cracked rotor system response is of particular interest and the results show that the climbing angle can markedly affect the parameter range for bifurcation, for quasi-periodic response and for chaotic response as well as for system stability. Aircraft acceleration is also shown to significantly affect the nonlinear behavior of the cracked rotor system, illustrating the possibility for on-line rotor crack fault diagnosis.