Air Facts

MAY 14, 2025

Throttle Mismanagement: A T-38 Lesson That Stuck Air Facts Journal An Air Force instructor teaches a powerful lesson on throttle finessein a jet that doesnt forgive overcorrections Have you ever been in a car or plane where the person driving or piloting is constantly adjusting the throttle? At least he didnt light the afterburners!

AGL

Pilot Institute

FEBRUARY 20, 2025

The problem is that the aileron can only be deflected to a point after which the drag becomes significant. Adverse yaw is created due to the drag differential between the two sides of the aircraft. The downward moving aileron produces more lift, but also generates more induced drag. This creates drag.

Aileron

Pilot Institute

APRIL 12, 2025

This principle is fundamental in generating lift, thrust, and maneuverability, allowing aircraft to fly. Thrust (how it moves forward). Thrust and Propulsion Systems A wing has to move fast enough through the air to generate lift effectively. That force is called thrust. Thrust relies on Newtons Third Law as well.

Torque

Vintage Aviation News

JUNE 17, 2025

Designated “Camel” by NATO, the Tu-104 was a narrow-body, twin-turbojet Soviet airliner that became the second jet-powered airliner to enter commercial service, following the British de Havilland Comet. Nonetheless, the Tu-104 remained in commercial use for a quarter-century—a testament to its pioneering role in early jet travel.

Drag

Vintage Aviation News

FEBRUARY 11, 2025

Intended to be a long-range escort fighter, the Consolidated XP-81 also represented a departure from conventional aircraft, but the rapidly evolving nature of both the Second World War and jet engines would see the XP-81 becoming nothing more than a footnote in American aviation history.

Thrust

WayMan

MAY 25, 2025

While commercial airliners are made up of millions of individual components, the foundation of every airplanewhether a Boeing jet or a training aircraft like a Cessna 172 starts with the same key parts. The engine is what provides the thrust needed to move the aircraft forward. Interested in Becoming a Pilot?

Lift

Pilot Institute

FEBRUARY 15, 2025

The jet slammed into the ground six thousand feet short of the runway, taking the lives of 134 people. Unable to recover, the jet struck approach lights short of the runway and then towers 8 and 9. Calm down and follow these steps: Apply maximum thrust immediately. Keep wings level to prevent unnecessary drag or instability.

Wind Shear

Aerotime

MARCH 27, 2025

One notable shootdown accredited to Yeager was one of historys very first air-to-air victories against a jet-powered fighter aircraft. These helped to minimize drag and ensure aerodynamic efficiency at high speeds. Yeager managed to catch a German Messerschmitt 262 just as it approached to land, shooting it down in the process.

Pilot

Flying Magazine

JUNE 2, 2025

Boom boasts that XB-1 is the first privately developed jet to break the sound barrier. Approaching and passing through Mach 1, however, an airplane acquires, in addition to the drag it already has, a new kind of drag, called wave drag. The problem for boomless cruise is that it takes place within the transonic drag rise.

Drag

Aerotime

DECEMBER 28, 2024

On paper, the fastest fighter jet of 2025 is the Mikoyan Gurevich MiG-25, which sets a pace of Mach 2.83. In terms of widely-used, theater-ready fighter jets, the F-15 Eagle takes the crown. However, in their day-to-day operations, the jets tend to fly significantly slower. It is followed by its sistership, the MiG-31.

Jet

Pilot Institute

JUNE 12, 2025

Aircraft that transform their wing shape mid-flight might sound like something out of a futuristic sci-fi, but they’re actually as old as the jet age itself. Modern jets favor simpler, stealthier fixed-wing designs. This aircraft was an experimental jet fighter with wings that could be adjusted to different sweep angles on the ground.

Weight-Shift-Control

Air Facts

JULY 30, 2025

However, we didn’t have to hook up a long hose, drag a bucket of soapy water, sponges, and a chamois cloth out on the ramp, then sweat under the Florida sun to complete the task. The underside of the jets and open gear wells were directly rinsed down, while arcs of water cascaded over the upper surfaces. I’ll tell you.

Runway

Flying Magazine

APRIL 30, 2024

Although the company built and flew two examples, the military quickly lost interest in piston engines, and Douglas pivoted, ultimately reworking the XB-42 into the jet-powered XB-43. While more airflow could be ducted onto the engines easily enough, this would come at the expense of significant drag.

Drag

Aerotime

JULY 26, 2024

The UK has a rich and deep history in engineering, invention, and innovation, and in the 18 th century it was the epicenter of the Industrial Revolution which dragged the world into the new age of industrialization. Aerospace is undergoing its biggest revolution since the jet engine era.

Lift

Vintage Aviation News

OCTOBER 26, 2024

[Public Domain, UK Government photo via Wikimedia Commons] Apart from the engine enhancements, the aircraft was also equipped with a cooling system that was aft-positioned to reduce the fuselage drag and generate jet thrust from heating air exiting the radiator.

Drag

Northstar VFR

JANUARY 8, 2024

Thrust Thrust is our forward motion. In a commercial airliner, the jet engines are creating the thrust required for the heavy plane to move forward. In your car, the engine under the hood is creating thrust for you to move forward, but you stay on the ground because you don’t have wings! Drag opposes lift.

Drag

Latatuide 33 Aviation

SEPTEMBER 12, 2023

The Challenger 350 has innovative cantlet wings that minimize drag alongside powerful engines that deliver immense thrust. This jet also utilizes sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) — a new type of fuel that offers numerous environmental advantages. Sustainability is also a consideration at the end of an aircraft’s lifecycle.

Flight Deck

Vintage Aviation News

OCTOBER 1, 2024

military made history with its first-ever jet-powered flight. The “Airacomet” became the first American jet aircraft developed during World War II in response to the advancements in jet propulsion made by the Germans and the British. military to pursue a jet-powered flight amidst the ongoing conflict during World War II.

Jet

Pilot's Life Blog

MARCH 15, 2024

Below are other critical pieces of the wings that help give the plane additional lift, reduce drag, or achieve lower speeds in preparation for landing: Ailerons: A French word meaning “fin” or “little wing,” the aileron helps control the airplane’s roll. The engine creates thrust by burning fuel.

Horizontal Stabilizer

Vintage Aviation News

SEPTEMBER 29, 2024

Bennett, who focused on incorporating a rotor-driven lift system with conventional wings and engines for forward thrust. This design reduced drag and increased efficiency during forward flight. During takeoff and landing, the rotor was powered by compressed air jets at the tips of the blades.

Runway

Jetwhine

JANUARY 17, 2024

Because I want to fly jets, sir!” I’ve been flying jets for years as a corporate pilot, but not real jets to some … like fighter jets. My goal in these Gauntlet jet-training sessions? But good jet flying is still demanding. built fighter jet—including the narrow and mildly pressurized (4 psi) cockpit.

Knot

Airspeed Junkie

AUGUST 6, 2024

Why the F15 Fighter Jet Reigns Supreme in Aerial Combat Why is the F15 fighter jet considered a legend in aerial combat? The F-15’s vertical takeoff capabilities, achieved through its impressive thrust-to-weight ratio and advanced flight control systems, allow rapid ascents and extreme maneuverability, vital in combat situations.

Jet

Vintage Aviation News

FEBRUARY 13, 2025

English Electric responded to the RAFs demand, designing a powerful, fire-breathing jet capable of reaching Mach 2 and altitudes of up to 88,000 feet16.6 This arrangement also reduced drag by 25% compared to a conventional engine setup. miles above the earth. Thus, the English Electric Lightning was born.

Jet

Aerotime

SEPTEMBER 20, 2024

As the Boeing 707 made its way down the runway, though, FBI agents and police officers shot out the tires, forcing the jet to stop and leaving the father and son team to face jail time. As the aircraft impacted with the water, it broke into four pieces and the jet was destroyed. His body was thrown down onto the tarmac below.

Cockpit

Vintage Aviation News

AUGUST 29, 2024

With ECM pods beeping and squeaking, our semi-spread formation of four jets created an indistinct blob of noise on enemy radars. It felt like we were dragging an 18-wheeler truck! Functioning exactly as designed, those flat-plate boards sticking into the airstream were creating beaucoup drag, battling against the J-79s’ thrust.

Drag

Plane and Pilot

JANUARY 7, 2025

Known for their role as a tandem jet trainer from 1948 to 1959, the T-33 is the airplane I thought I might have to reach for my first sick-sack in, only to laugh my way through it for an exhilarating, one-time 11-minute ride. Asked which was their favorite early jet, the answers I got were unanimous: The B-707.

Airplanes

Plane and Pilot

OCTOBER 3, 2024

Winging It Aside from the aforementioned desire for a greater aspect ratio for reduced drag, the one-piece Gweduck wing was developed for minimal weight, ease of construction and benign handling. Keeping drag corralled was emphasized as the Gweduck mission is foremost long-distance cruising. Maintenance room is generally very good.

Airplanes

Aerotime

FEBRUARY 21, 2025

The F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter program has the dubious accolade of being the most expensive fighter jet project in history, with an estimated lifetime cost of over $1.7 But the cost of the defense project doesnt always equate to the most expensive fighter jets in terms of sticker price.

Jet

Vintage Aviation News

DECEMBER 31, 2024

With the 1950s having ushered in the era of jet airliners, many airline officials believed that the 1960s would see the rise in supersonic travel for the general public. Because the Tu-144 lacked any reverse thrust capabilities, it was also forced to rely on a drag chute to help slow it down during landings.

Pilot in Command

One Mile at a Time

JUNE 14, 2025

We do have video footage of the plane’s takeoff from a couple of angles, and it shows the heavy jet struggling to gain altitude just seconds after takeoff. No thrust, no power, and/or no lift? When an experienced captain says that a plane has no thrust and is losing power, what can we really conclude from that? What happened?

Thrust