From the book
This force, opposing thrust, acts on an aircraft in motion through the air, and is primarily caused by friction and pressure differences.
What is drag?
Often called the "Jumbo Jet," this wide-body airliner was the first ever produced and was a dominant force in air travel for decades.
What is the Boeing 747?
This iconic aircraft design, characterized by two main wings, was common in the early days of flight.
What is a biplane?
This mission, which successfully landed humans on the Moon, used the Apollo Lunar Module as its landing craft.
What is Apollo 11?
This American aviation pioneer, along with his brother, is credited with inventing and building the world's first successful airplane and making the first controlled, sustained flight of a powered, heavier-than-air aircraft.
Who are Orville/Wilbur Wright?
This part of an aircraft's wing is specifically shaped to create a pressure differential, resulting in the generation of lift.
What is an airfoil?
This British-built airliner holds the distinction of being the world's first commercial jetliner to enter service in 1952, though its early models famously suffered from significant structural fatigue issues.
What is the de Havilland Comet?
During World War II, this famous group of African American military aviators became known for their distinguished service and courage.
Who are the Tuskegee Airmen?
This type of spacecraft is designed to orbit Earth and collect information about weather, communication, or navigation.
What is a satellite?
In 1947, this American test pilot became the first person to break the sound barrier.
Who is Chuck Yeager?
An aircraft rotates around three imaginary lines: the longitudinal, lateral, and vertical. These are collectively known as what?
What are the Axes of Flight?
This American wide-body trijet airliner was a major competitor to the McDonnell Douglas DC-10 during the 1970s and 80s, known for its advanced automated landing system and excellent safety record.
What is the Lockheed L-1011 TriStar?
In 1783, this French duo launched the first successful hot air balloon with humans aboard.
Who are the Montgolfier brothers?
Launched in 1977, this NASA probe is the farthest human-made object from Earth and continues to send back data from interstellar space.
What is Voyager 1?
This legendary American aeronautical engineer headed the Lockheed Skunk Works for decades, overseeing the design of groundbreaking aircraft such as the U-2 spy plane and the SR-71 Blackbird. Who is Clarence "Kelly" Johnson?
Who is Clarence "Kelly" Johnson?
This principle, discovered by a Swiss mathematician, explains how an increase in the speed of a fluid occurs simultaneously with a decrease in pressure or a decrease in the fluid's potential energy, and is fundamental to how an airplane wing generates lift.
What is Bernoulli's Principle?
Developed by Lockheed, this turboprop military transport aircraft has been continuously produced longer than any other military aircraft in history and is used globally for diverse missions.
What is the Lockheed C-130 Hercules?
This record-breaking flight in 1986 achieved the first non-stop, unrefueled circumnavigation of the Earth by an aircraft.
What is the Voyager flight?
Named after an astronomer, this space telescope was launched in 1990 and has provided stunning images of distant galaxies and nebulae.
What is the Hubble Space Telescope?
Often called the "Red Baron," this German fighter pilot was one of the most famous aces of World War I.
Who is Manfred von Richthofen?
This phenomenon, crucial for a jet engine's operation, involves the compression of air, its mixing with fuel, ignition, and subsequent expansion and expulsion to create thrust.
What is the Brayton Cycle (or gas turbine cycle)?
Instantly recognizable by its twin-boom configuration and twin engines, this American World War II fighter earned nicknames like "Fork-Tailed Devil" from its adversaries and excelled in roles from interceptor to ground attack.
What is the Lockheed P-38 Lightning?
This significant aeronautical design innovation, first successfully implemented on a German aircraft in 1939, dramatically improved high-speed performance by delaying the onset of compressibility effects.
What is the swept wing?
This module, part of the International Space Station, is where astronauts live, work, and conduct scientific research.
What is the Unity Node?
Often considered the "mother of the modern airline industry," this formidable figure broke barriers as the first female president of a major U.S. airline, Frontier Airlines, in 1970. Who is Marian W. Clarke?
Who is Marian W. Clarke?