Airfoil, Thrust and True Airspeed

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Airfoil

Thrust

True Airspeed

Mach Number Explained: What It Is and Why Pilots Use It

Pilot Institute

JULY 11, 2025

Key Takeaways Mach number is a dimensionless ratio of true airspeed to local speed of sound. Mach number is simply a ratio of your true airspeed to the local speed of sound. Air density drops with altitude, so for a given true speed, dynamic pressure (and thus IAS) will be lower at high altitudes. Here’s why.

True Airspeed

True Airspeed Pilot Indicated Airspeed Lift

Air pressure and density

Professional Pilot

JULY 7, 2025

Every pilot knows that aircraft fly because the forces of lift and thrust balance or exceed the weight and drag countering them. Aeronautical engineers improve continually on that imbalance with better airfoils and powerplants along with aircraft designs and materials to reduce weight and drag.

Density Altitude

Density Altitude Altimeter Airfoil Lift

Aviator Connection

Mach Number Explained: What It Is and Why Pilots Use It

Air pressure and density

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