Parts of an Aircraft
What is the main body of an airplane called?
Fuselage
What force pulls an airplane toward the Earth?
Weight
What force does a wing produce that helps keep an airplane in the air?
Lift
What is the force that opposes an airplane’s motion through the air?
Drag
What is the main purpose of an aircraft engine?
To produce thrust
What part of the aircraft provides most of its lift?
Winga
What force pushes an airplane forward?
Thrust
What is the angle between the wing’s chord line and the relative wind called?
Angle of attack
What are the two main types of drag you learned about?
Parasite drag and induced drag
What happens during Intake?
fuel and air enter the piston
What part contains the aircraft's engine?
Powerplant
What force acts opposite the airplane’s motion through the air?
Drag
As angle of attack increases, what generally happens to lift; until the critical angle is reached?
Lift increases
Which type of drag is generally associated with producing lift?
Induced drag
In a basic piston engine, what part moves up and down inside the cylinder?
The piston
Which part of the aircraft supports it while it is on the ground?
Landing gear
What force acts upward and helps keep an airplane in the air?
Lift
True or false: An airplane can stall even while its engine is still running.
True. A stall happens because the wing exceeds its critical angle of attack, not because the engine stops.
Name two types of parasite drag.
Form drag, skin-friction drag, or interference drag
What are the four stages of the four-stroke cycle?
Intake, compression, power, and exhaust
This part of the aircraft includes the tail and helps provide stability and control. What is it?
Empennage
An airplane is flying straight and level at a constant speed. If all four forces are balanced, what happens to the airplane?
It continues flying straight and level at a constant speed
What happens when a wing exceeds its critical angle of attack?
The wing stalls because airflow separates and lift decreases.
An airplane has two parts that meet and create extra turbulence where they connect. What type of parasite drag is this?
Interference drag
What does the crankshaft do in a piston engine?
It converts the piston's up-and-down motion into rotational motion, which can be used to turn the propeller.