FIXED WING UAV TRAINING MODULE

What makes an airplane fly?

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                A general and basic knowledge of how airplanes fly is that the wings allows it to fly while the propeller or jet engines propel it forwards. However, a pilot or an operator should know that there is more than just that. There are four forces that act on an airplane while in flight. These four forces are lift, thrust, weight and drag.

 

                To generate enough lift, it is more than just having a wing. The shape of the wing greatly affects the amount of lift it can generate, it is shaped like an airfoil. The wind that is passing around the wing helps generate the lift. The air that passes across the airfoil is forced to move faster above the wing than it is below the wing. Faster wind generates lower pressure while slower wind generates higher pressure upwards generating the lift. With the wing generating the force lift moving up, force of thrust pushes the airplane forwards that is generated by the propeller or the jet engines. Technically, the general knowledge of how airplanes fly is correct since lift generated by the wing and the thrust from the propeller or jet engines propel it forward. However, not only two forces are acting upon the plane.

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                The other two forces acting on the plane are the forces that counteract the first two, weight and drag. Weight is due to the materials used for the airplane, passenger, pilot and cargo or payload of the plane. All the weight of the plane and its load combined is called gross weight. To be able for an airplane to fly, the lift generated must be equal or greater than the gross weight. If the gross weight is higher than the lift generated, the airplane will not be able to fly and can be disastrous. Lastly, drag is a natural force of an object resisting moving through a fluid like air. Similarly, to weight, thrust force must overcome the drag force to be able to propel the airplane forward.