Forces of Flight 🛫
What are the four forces of flight?
Lift, Weight (Gravity), Thrust, Drag
What part of the airplane controls up and down movement (pitch)?
Elevators
Who were the two brothers that created the first successful airplane?
The Wright Brothers (Orville & Wilbur Wright)
ernoulli’s Principle states that fast-moving air creates ______ pressure, while slow-moving air creates ______ pressure.
Low, High
What part of the airplane holds the passengers and cargo?
Fuselage
Which force pulls an airplane down toward the Earth?
Weight (Gravity)
What control surface helps a plane roll left or right?
Ailerons
What percentage of the world’s population has ever been on an airplane? (Closest guess wins!
Only about 5%
How does Bernoulli’s Principle help an airplane generate lift?
Air moves faster over the top of the wing, creating lower pressure, and the higher pressure below pushes the wing up.
True or False: A more aerodynamic airplane will experience more drag.
False. A more aerodynamic design reduces drag.
This force pushes a plane forward and is created by the engines or propellers.
Thrust
The rudder controls which motion of an airplane?
Yaw (side-to-side movement of the nose)
What is the name of the first powered aircraft?
The Wright Flyer
What happens to air when it flows faster over the curved top of a wing?
It creates lower pressure, which helps lift the airplane.
What happens if an airplane has too much weight? How does it affect flight?
It needs more thrust to take off, has a longer takeoff roll, and may struggle to stay in the air.
What happens if drag is greater than thrust? Does the plane speed up, slow down, or stay the same?
It slows down.
What happens when the right aileron moves up and the left aileron moves down?
The plane rolls to the right.
True or False: A Boeing 747 can fly from New York to Australia on one tank of fuel.
False
True or False: Airplane wings are completely flat on both sides.
False. The top is curved to create lift.
Why are modern airplanes made with lightweight materials like aluminum and carbon fiber?
To reduce weight, improve fuel efficiency, and allow for easier takeoff.
Explain Newton’s Third Law and how it relates to thrust in an airplane.
For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. The engines push air backward, and the plane moves forward.
What would happen if a plane had no elevators? Would it be able to go up and down? Why or why not?
No, because elevators control pitch. Without them, the plane would not be able to move up or down properly.
Name a special aircraft that flies so high passengers can see the curvature of the Earth!
The Concorde
Bonus Challenge: You are designing a paper airplane. How would you shape the wings to increase lift?
Curve the top of the wings slightly to make the air move faster over them, just like real airplane wings.
Bonus Challenge: You are designing a new airplane. What are three ways you could improve its speed and efficiency?
1) Use lightweight materials, 2) Make it more aerodynamic, 3) Use powerful engines to generate more thrust.