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Because lift and drag are both aerodynamic forces, the ratio of lift to drag is an indication of the aerodynamic efficiency of the airplane. The lift to drag ratio is the L/D ratio, pronounced "L over D ratio." An airplane has a high L/D ratio if it produces a large amount of lift or a small amount of drag.
[8] [9] The curved profile of the "wing" is comparable to the aerodynamic shape of a bird wing. [10] The fish is able to increase its time in the air by flying straight into or at an angle to the direction of updrafts created by a combination of air and ocean currents .
Aircraft flight mechanics are relevant to fixed wing (gliders, aeroplanes) and rotary wing (helicopters) aircraft.An aeroplane (airplane in US usage), is defined in ICAO Document 9110 as, "a power-driven heavier than air aircraft, deriving its lift chiefly from aerodynamic reactions on surface which remain fixed under given conditions of flight".
A paper plane, paper aeroplane (UK), paper airplane (US), paper glider, paper dart or dart is a toy aircraft (usually a glider) made out of paper or paperboard; the practice of constructing paper planes is sometimes referred to as aerogami (Japanese: kamihikÅki), after origami, the Japanese art of paper folding. [28]
With a symmetrical rocket or missile, the directional stability in yaw is the same as the pitch stability; it resembles the short period pitch oscillation, with yaw plane equivalents to the pitch plane stability derivatives. For this reason, pitch and yaw directional stability are collectively known as the "weathercock" stability of the missile.
Gliders commencing a takeoff behind a tow plane are vulnerable to ground looping during cross-wind conditions because the slipstream from the propeller of the tow plane generates more lift on the downwind wing of the glider than on the upwind wing. If the flight controls are unable to overcome the rolling tendency at this low speed, the upwind ...
A F/A-18F during transonic flight. A vapor cone (also known as a Mach diamond, [1] shock collar, or shock egg) is a visible cloud of condensed water that can sometimes form around an object moving at high speed through moist air, such as an aircraft flying at transonic speeds.
Once in orbit, a spacecraft may fire rocket engines to make in-plane changes to a different altitude or type of orbit, or to change its orbital plane. These maneuvers require changes in the craft's velocity, and the classical rocket equation is used to calculate the propellant requirements for a given delta-v .