Pilot Institute

JUNE 4, 2025

This setup makes the wing less efficient overall, but it can reduce drag, weight, and cost compared to using a separate tail. High aspect ratio wings reduce drag and improve performance during climb or slow flight. On the flipside, a decrease in aspect ratio will result in higher drag. Short, wide wings have a low aspect ratio.

Tail 52

Tail Airplanes Weight-Shift-Control Drag 52

Pilot Institute

FEBRUARY 20, 2025

At first glance, ailerons look like ordinary hinged panels on the wings, but don’t be fooledthey’re important for keeping an aircraft both stable and maneuverable. But theres much more to ailerons than just rolling left or right. Or how do modern airplanes reduce dangerous effects like aileron flutter or adverse yaw?

Aileron 90

Aileron Weight-Shift-Control Rudder Longitudinal Axis 90

WayMan

MAY 25, 2025

These include: Fuselage Wings Cockpit Engine Propeller (in some aircraft) Tail Assembly (Empennage) Landing Gear Understanding how these parts interact is essential to grasping the basics of aerodynamicsand its one of the first steps in becoming a safe and informed pilot. Pilots learn to manage these systems as part of advanced training.

Lift 52

Lift Thrust Tail Horizontal Stabilizer 52

Aerotime

NOVEMBER 22, 2024

Before the aircraft begins to move, on the left-hand ( port ) side of the aircraft you may also notice the ground crew waving a thin red flag at the captain (who always sits, aviation convention dictates, in the left-hand seat in the cockpit of fixed-wing aircraft).

Cabin Crew 273

Cabin Crew Runway Clearance Knot 273

Pilot's Life Blog

JANUARY 12, 2025

Understanding the Basics of Flight Principles of Flight: Lift, Weight, Thrust, and Drag Flying a plane for the first time requires a basic understanding of the forces that make flight possible. Thrust, produced by the engines, moves the plane forward, while drag, or air resistance, slows it down.

Aileron 52

Aileron Drag Rudder Descent 52

Pilot's Life Blog

MARCH 15, 2024

Most Crucial Aircraft Components, From the Flight Crew to the Cockpit, Are in the Fuselage The body of an airplane is known as the fuselage. Pilots navigate the airplane forward in glass cockpits, which are located just over the aircraft’s nose. This long, metal tube connects all the main components of an airplane.

Horizontal Stabilizer 52

Horizontal Stabilizer Aileron Air Traffic Control Lift 52

Flying Magazine

APRIL 26, 2024

The small aileron “tabs” were not doing a great job in crosswind ability. In the CRJ you can not hear any engines from the cockpit, making for an odd audio sensation. As is often the case with swept-wing jets, sometimes extra drag is required beyond gear and flaps. Taking off in violent winds was a task.

Crosswind 105

Crosswind Weather Knot Aileron 105