Pilot Institute

JULY 11, 2025

Lift, drag, and handling correlate well with IAS in the lower atmosphere. This type of wing redirects the shockwaves further aft on the wing, reducing drag. This means the inboard wing loses lift first, while the wingtips might still be lifting. This is partly due to the steep rise in drag nearing M cr.

True Airspeed

Flying Magazine

MAY 7, 2025

Subscribe Now Carsons argument began with the familiar observation that because airplanes need to climb, their engines are more powerful than they would be if they were sized solely for most efficient cruising. Naval Academy, approached the problem by setting lift-drag ratio, L/D, as his metric of efficiency.

True Airspeed

Air Facts

MAY 14, 2025

As he lifted off from a touch-and-go, I shook the control stick and said, Ive got the jet. He shook the stick in reply: Youve got the airplane. The G-loading and added drag slowed us below the gear limit speed (240 KIAS). I lowered the nose, pushed the throttles to 100%, lifted off again, and cleaned up the airplane.

AGL

Pilot Institute

NOVEMBER 16, 2024

The faster an aircraft goes, the more lift it generates. Lift is the upward force that keeps you in the air. If airspeed is too slow, the aircraft could lose lift and stall. Meanwhile, lower altitudes demand that you be extra careful with airspeed to maintain lift and prevent stalls. miles per hour. Dangerous mistake.

True Airspeed

Flying Magazine

JULY 3, 2025

I fully expected the gauge to fix itself before we landed because that is what old airplanes frequently do (this airframe was about 42 years young). Time for that full disclosure stuff… I am a CFI in airplanes and gliders, and actively teach in gliders. Full flaps are mostly about drag, not lift.

Knot

Professional Pilot

JULY 7, 2025

However, they underestimated their climb from the lift off point and, with the sluggish rate of climb, the saddle ridge across the departure path suddenly became a dangerous obstacle they might not clear. Every pilot knows that aircraft fly because the forces of lift and thrust balance or exceed the weight and drag countering them.

Density Altitude

Pilot Institute

FEBRUARY 20, 2025

Or how do modern airplanes reduce dangerous effects like aileron flutter or adverse yaw? Key Takeaways Ailerons control the aircrafts roll by adjusting lift on each wing. The aircrafts wing is able to generate lift due to its shape. Why does this increase the lift? How Do Ailerons Work?

Aileron

Pilot Institute

NOVEMBER 2, 2024

This can cause you to lose lift. Remember Bernoulli’s Theorem and how lift is created. The loss of lift causes the aircraft to stall and lose altitude. When the aircraft is in a high-drag configuration, a stall at a low altitude can be quite dangerous. Without a quick reaction, it can lead to a dangerous situation.

Descent

Vintage Aviation News

FEBRUARY 12, 2025

With carrier aviation still in its infancy, airships could fly further than many airplanes of the day and remain in the air for days on end without the need to land to refuel and replenish their supplies. While flying high over West Texas, the sun heated and expanded the helium lifting gas, forcing the Macon to rise up.

Lift

WayMan

MAY 25, 2025

The Main Parts of an Airplane While aircraft come in many designs and sizes, they all share several core components. Wings: The Source of Lift The wings are what make fixed-wing flight possible. As air moves over the curved top surface of the wing and the flatter bottom, lift is generated, allowing the plane to rise.

Lift

Pilot Institute

APRIL 12, 2025

Lift is the force that aircraft use to counter gravity. Newton’s Third Law is one of the key laws of physics that explains lift. Lets see what Newtons Third Law is, and why we need it to understand lift. This principle is fundamental in generating lift, thrust, and maneuverability, allowing aircraft to fly.

Torque

Pilot Institute

NOVEMBER 16, 2024

If you dream of flying small airplanes on weekends or piloting commercial airliners with hundreds of passengers, you need certain pilot licenses to reach your aviation goals. During training, you’ll learn about Newton’s laws of motion, Bernoulli’s principle, and aerodynamic forces, including lift, thrust, and drag.

Pilot

CFI Academy

MAY 12, 2025

Source: FAA Airplane Flying Handbook, Chapter 4 – “Slow Flight” Teaching slow flight effectively requires more than rote maneuvers. During slow flight, the aircraft requires a higher nose-up attitude to counteract reduced lift at slower speeds. Why it works: Over-controlling is one of the most common mistakes in slow flight.

Drag

Pilot Institute

FEBRUARY 15, 2025

With nothing left to lift it, the core has nowhere else to go but down. When you fly into a microburst on approach or departure, youll first encounter a strong headwind, which will give you a brief lift. Without enough altitude or time to react, the aircraft can lose lift and crash before you can recover. Dont lower the nose!

Wind Shear

CFI Academy

MAY 12, 2025

Source: FAA Airplane Flying Handbook, Chapter 4 Slow Flight Teaching slow flight effectively requires more than rote maneuvers. During slow flight, the aircraft requires a higher nose-up attitude to counteract reduced lift at slower speeds. Why it works: Over-controlling is one of the most common mistakes in slow flight.

Drag

Plane and Pilot

JULY 22, 2025

After 800 hours of flying, with almost 50 different types in my logbook, there are several airplanes that I have felt one with—Game Aerospace’s GB1 GameBird , almost any member of the classic and modern day Cub species, and a very specific Cessna 170, just to name a few. Let’s walk through it real quick. Very nice,” Finkbeiner said.

Runway

Vintage Aviation News

MAY 2, 2025

In 1954 this photo of two swept wing airplanes was taken on the ramp of NACA High-Speed Flight Research Station. Although the B-47A appeared structurally sound upon arrival, flight testing revealed notable shortcomingsparticularly buffeting issues that limited both its top speed and achievable lift.

Gross Weight

Plane and Pilot

APRIL 23, 2025

Theres something about the feeling of flying a retractable-gear airplane. Feeling that gentle nudge of acceleration as you retract the gear during climb-out feels great, as does knowing youve got none of that drag slowing you down and increasing fuel burnin cruise. For more information, email info@flyingfinance.com.

Transponder

Plane and Pilot

JULY 1, 2025

The pilot said he refueled the airplane the day before the accident and checked the fuel level during his preflight inspection the following morning. The postaccident examination of the airplane was compromised by the saltwater damage to the engine. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing.

Density Altitude

Pilot Institute

JUNE 12, 2025

Key Takeaways Variable-sweep wings adjust in flight to balance lift and speed. A variable-sweep wing, also called a “swing wing,” is a type of airplane wing that can change its angle while flying. This is because straight wings have a higher aspect ratio, which also increases the coefficient of lift.

Weight-Shift-Control

World Airline News

APRIL 24, 2025

Collaboration includes a path for United to purchase up to 200 airplanes 1 JetZero’s Z4 blended wing body or “all wing” design has the potential to enhance passenger experience and improve fuel efficiency by up to 50% 2 JetZero was awarded a $235 million contract by the U.S. In 2023, the U.S.

Airplanes

Flight Training Central

JUNE 30, 2025

Baffled by Bernoulli A CFI applicant was asked to teach lift during their practical exam. When he created his principle of differential pressure, he had no thoughts about its future application to the development of airfoils and lift production. This lower pressure on the top of the wing is a part of the lift production.

Airfoil

Flight Training Central

AUGUST 21, 2024

During your flight training, you’ll learn all about the 4 forces acting on the airplane in flight, including lift, thrust, weight and drag. This week’s tip takes a closer look at the aerodynamic forces that cause the rearward force of drag, including a breakdown of parasite vs. induced drag.

Drag

Aerotime

DECEMBER 6, 2024

Physics of mobility 101 Every movement, every transportation, regardless of whether it takes place in a car, by train, on a bicycle, in an airplane or simply by walking, requires energy. It must be noted that energy to overcome air drag is only required when the movement takes place in an atmospheric environment.

Drag

Flight Training Central

MAY 7, 2024

As much as it seems sometimes that airplanes fly by magic, it’s important for every pilot to understand at least the basic fundamentals of aerodynamics. The term 'angle of attack' is defined as the angle between the airplane's longitudinal axis and that of the air striking the airfoil. What force makes an airplane turn?

Longitudinal Axis

Flying Magazine

MAY 30, 2025

The Bleriot XI that was the first airplane to cross the English Channel was a monoplane, as was the first really effective fighter of World War I, the Fokker Eindecker. When engines were weak and it was hard to get into the air at all, multiple wings were an obvious way to add lift without making the airplane much bigger.

Drag

Simple Flying

MAY 29, 2024

One of the design differences between the two manufacturers is the types of wingtip devices used on airplanes. These are specialized enhancements at the tips of wings to minimize lift-induced drag and increase fuel efficiency in flight. Can you tell the difference between Airbus and Boeing aircraft?

Drag

AV Web

DECEMBER 3, 2024

A pair of aerodynamic researchers at the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) in Switzerland have created a raptor-inspired drone that uses its tail feathers to control bank, rather than wingtip feathers mimicked by ailerons on airplanes.

Tail

Flight Training Central

MAY 6, 2024

Low wing airplanes were designed by the very devil himself. You don’t have to hang around airports, airplanes or pilots very long until someone will crank up the high wing versus low wing debate. You don’t have to hang around airports, airplanes or pilots very long until someone will crank up the high wing versus low wing debate.

Drag

Northstar VFR

JANUARY 8, 2024

By Josh Page, CFI Whenever I’m in an airplane as a passenger or a pilot , I still marvel that this heavy machine can get off the ground, soar through the sky, and land at my destination. Understanding these four forces of flight will help you know how your airplane can actually take off and fly. It’s simply amazing. Simple as that!

Drag

Northstar VFR

JULY 21, 2024

The airplane rudder is one of the most misunderstood of the primary flight controls. The yaw of the airplane rotates around its vertical axis. The rudder is a movable flight control which is mounted on the trailing edge of the vertical stabilizer on the back of the airplane. Where is the rudder? Why is this?

Rudder

Pilot Institute

SEPTEMBER 30, 2024

The lift and drag imbalance between the left and right ailerons creates adverse yaw. Adverse yaw is an undesirable side effect of lift production, resulting in an uncoordinated, slipping turn. This creates more lift and drag on the upgoing wing (left) and less on the downgoing (right) wing. What is Adverse Yaw?

Aileron

Vintage Aviation News

OCTOBER 7, 2024

The unique cylindrical design of the fuselage allowed for a streamlined profile and reduced drag, increasing the overall efficiency. Moreover, even the airfoil shape of the duct interior proved to be an effectual idea as it provided the aircraft with additional lift, a very low landing speed of 42mph, and a higher rate of climb.

Airfoil

AV Web

OCTOBER 3, 2024

In my mind, I knew that other airplanes had more capacity – my friend Kim and her husband Nick had just flown a few missions in their DeHavilland Beaver, and a trio of C-47s had made runs to some of the communities in need. As the volunteers emptied my airplane, my hopes of sticking around for a few days of missions faded.

Airplanes

Pilot Institute

SEPTEMBER 18, 2024

A smaller bank angle will result in more lift, while an increased bank angle will reduce the lift. To learn all the maneuvers you’ll need to perform on your practical test, check out Airplane Maneuvers Mastery for more. As an aircraft banks, lift is divided into horizontal and vertical components. What Are Steep Turns?

Lift

Pilot Institute

OCTOBER 2, 2024

But, as you near the runway, the airplane starts to float. Your wings don’t create as much drag as they would at higher altitudes, which gives you extra lift. Key Takeaways Ground effect increases an aircraft’s lift and decreases drag. You feel in control. It’s not magic—it’s ground effect.

Ground Effect

Pilot's Life Blog

MARCH 15, 2024

Learn the basic structure of an airplane while in flight school at Leopard Aviation. From the navigation display to the wing structure, understanding all segments of an airplane is crucial in the aviation industry. This long, metal tube connects all the main components of an airplane.

Horizontal Stabilizer