The Physics of Airplane Flight

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The Physics of Airplane Flight

There are several aspects involved in the dynamics of airplanes and what makes them fly. This report will address the wings of airplanes, lift, propellers, jet engines and steering and stability of an airplane. Essentially these are main topics of airplane flight.

The wing of an airplane is an airfoil, very similar to that of a Frisbee. The wing of an airplane is shaped so that the air moves faster over the top part of the wing than on the bottom surface of the wing. Due to “Bernoulli’s” effect, the pressure is greater below the wing than above it, thus the wing has an upward “ lift”.

This brings us into the dynamic of lift. The lift is what keeps the airplane in the sky. As an airplane travels down the runway, the air striking the front of the wing separates into two air streams. At first, both air streams travel at the same speed, but as the airplane increases its speed, the airstreams adopt different speeds. Because of the shape and orientation of the airplanes’ wing, the air going over the top of the wing has further to travel than the air below the wing .The air stream below the wing reaches the back of the wing first, finds an empty space and proceeds to meet the oncoming top air stream. This creates instability, because as the plane travels faster, the airstream’s momentum has to change as it goes around the rear of the wing. The turning point extends further and further behind the wing until the airstreams form a vortex and peel away from the wing. Now a stable air pattern begins to develop, in which the top airstream travels faster than the bottom airstream. This allows the air particles to arrive at the front of the wing together and flow back separately and meet at the rea...

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...the plane so it will turn horizontally.

This has been more less an overview of the physics of airplane flight and the dynamics of flight. Each one of the previous components of flight that were discussed; airplane wings, lift, induced drag, propellers, jet engines, stability and steering, are actually quite complex in their own unique way, but as a general description of airplane flight, the previous discussion gives an accurate account of the main components of how an airplane flies.

References

1)How Things Work – The Physics Of Everyday Life By: Louis A. Bloomfield – Copyright 1997 by John Wiley and Sons. RE# QC7

2) The World Of Physics – Mysteries Magic and Myth By: John W. Jewett, Jr. – Copyright 2001 by Harcourt, Inc. RE# QC9

3) Physics – A World View Fourth Edition By: Larry D Kirkpatrick and Gerald F. Wheeler – Copyright 2001 by Harcourt, Inc.

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