Flight Principle Flashcards
(28 cards)
What are the four fundamental forces acting on an aircraft?
Lift, Weight, Drag, and Thrust.
Which forces are man-made and which are natural?
Man-made: Thrust (engine) and Lift (wings). Natural: Weight (gravity) and Drag.
Who is considered the world’s first aeronautical engineer?
George Cayley.
What did George Cayley discover about curved surfaces?
Curved surfaces produce more lift than flat ones.
How is lift generated on an airplane?
By the wings (airfoils), where airflow over the curved top surface creates lower pressure compared to the bottom.
What is an airfoil?
The shape of a wing (curved on top, flatter on the bottom) designed to produce lift.
What is the chord of a wing?
A straight line connecting the leading edge to the trailing edge of the wing.
What is camber?
The curved surface of the airfoil.
According to Bernoulli’s Theorem how are pressure and velocity related
Higher velocity = lower pressure, and vice versa.
Why does air move faster over the top of the wing?
Because the upper camber has more surface, forcing the air to accelerate.
What is thrust?
The man-made force (from engines) that pushes the aircraft forward.
How does thrust relate to drag?
Thrust must exceed drag for the aircraft to accelerate or maintain speed.
What factors increase drag?
Denser medium, more air hitting the surface, and the shape of the object.
What is the Angle of Attack (AoA)?
The angle between the wing’s chord line
How does AoA affect lift?
Greater AoA generates greater lift (up to a critical point).
What causes a stall?
When the AoA exceeds a critical point (usually ~15 degrees)
How can a pilot recover from a stall?
By decreasing the Angle of Attack.
What is the difference between subsonic and supersonic speeds?
Subsonic = slower than the speed of sound; supersonic = faster.
What is the function of spoilers?
To reduce lift and slow down the aircraft.
What is the difference between a slot and a slat?
A slot is the gap; a slat is the movable part that creates the gap to maintain lift at high AoA.
What is the difference between attitude and altitude?
Attitude = orientation/motion of the aircraft; altitude = height above sea level.
How does air pressure change during lift generation?
High pressure below the wing pushes upward toward low pressure above the wing.
What replaces the low-pressure zone during a stall?
Turbulent flow (burble), causing loss of lift.
Why do wings have a curved design?
To create differential air pressure (Bernoulli’s principle)
