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Airspeed and Altitude Control Simplified: Tips for Stable Flying

Pilot Institute

For instance, an aircraft maintaining a steady IAS at 30,000 feet will have a faster TAS than at sea level due to reduced drag from thinner air. Using the VSI and Altimeter for Stability The vertical speed indicator and altimeter are your best tools for maintaining a steady altitude. How does this look in real life?

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Air pressure and density

Professional Pilot

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. inches of mercury (1013.25

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Accident Briefs—July 2025

Plane and Pilot

Investigators noted at the time of the accident the temperature was 30 degrees Celsius, the dew point was 4 C, and the altimeter setting was 29.98. The left-engine propeller was not feathered at the accident site, which resulted in additional in-flight drag and a higher minimum controllable airspeed (VMC).

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Quiz: Understanding Aircraft Performance

Flight Training Central

The result of an alteration in airflow patterns increasing induced drag about the wings of an airplane. Determine the pressure altitude at an airport that is 1,300 feet MSL with an altimeter setting of 29.6. Answer these questions and see if you can correctly determine all the factors required for adequate aircraft performance.

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Airspeed & Vertical Speed

Plane and Pilot

The altimeter will tell us how much height we’ve gained, but estimating how fast the needles are turning (or the tape is sliding past) is a lousy way to tell how fast the altitude is changing. And in a plane, aerodynamic drag will keep it from going any faster. Going back to the car analogy, it’s how steep the hill is.

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How to Make Perfect Steep Turns (Step-By-Step)

Pilot Institute

The downward deflected aileron produces more lift, and more lift produces more induced drag. This added drag will cause the aircraft to yaw towards the direction of the raised wing. Induced Drag Induced drag is a byproduct of lift. Induced Drag Induced drag is a byproduct of lift.

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How to Fly Perfect Lazy Eights

Pilot Institute

While the tilting lift vectors are an important source of adverse yaw, drag also plays a part. Any time a wing creates lift, it creates induced drag. In our example, the right wing has more lift, and thus more drag, than the left wing as the airplane rolls. This drag imbalance amplifies the adverse yaw.