How planes fly
Air that moves faster presses with less pressure. A plane's wing is shaped, curved on top and tilted up a little, so that air flows faster over it than under it. The air below then presses harder than the air above and pushes the wing up: that upward force is lift. Lift grows with speed, which is why a plane races along the runway before it can rise. Four forces act on a flying plane: its weight pulls it down, lift pushes it up, the engines' thrust drives it forward, and air resistance holds it back.
Depth 1 · Foundation
You know that faster-moving air presses with less pressure, that a wing's shape makes lift this way, and can name the four forces on a flying plane: weight, lift, thrust and air resistance.
Sign in to prove what you know with a short quiz, see how deep you've gone, and earn XP for it.
Sign in with GoogleDepths of understanding
- 1
Foundation
You know that faster-moving air presses with less pressure, that a wing's shape makes lift this way, and can name the four forces on a flying plane: weight, lift, thrust and air resistance.
Your path here
What's still between you and How planes fly, depth 1, in the order you can learn it.
- 1Things that moveDepth 1 · Foundation · Mechanics
- 2Slippery and roughDepth 1 · Foundation · Mechanics
- 3ForceDepth 1 · Foundation · Mechanics
- 4Slippery and roughDepth 2 · Deeper · Mechanics
- 5Air resistanceDepth 1 · Foundation · Mechanics
- 6GravityDepth 1 · Foundation · Mechanics
- 7GravityDepth 2 · Deeper · Mechanics
- 8How planes flyDepth 1 · Foundation · Mechanics
Where it fits
Builds on
This concept