What really keeps an airplane in the air?

Question

How does it work?

Answer 1

  no no no no no!!! THE REASON PLANES FLY IS ............................................................................................................................. ................................................................................................. ..............................................................................................

MONEY, MoNeY money MOONNEEY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Answer 2

P.F.M.

Answer 3

By Bernoulli's theorem. http://www.exo.net/~pauld/physics/bernou...

Answer 4

An airplane stays in the air because its wings produce more lift than the weight of the airplane.

The wings produce lift because they have an aerodynamic shape that causes the air above the wing to be at a lower pressure than the air below the wing; as a result, the air below pushes the wing upward into the space left by the lower-pressure air above.

You can find much more information, including pictures and diagrams, by doing an internet search on "aerodynamic lift" or on "the Bernoulli effect."  It is much easier to explain with a couple of illustrations, so that approach is strongly recommended.

You word your question as though you have had it explained to you but are not sure you believe what you have been told.  That is an unfortunate by-product of life in an advanced technological society.  You are surrounded by things like airplanes, electricity, computers, and medicines that are very complicated to explain and understand.  You have to either take it on faith that the people who need to understand do understand, or you have to take it upon yourself to learn all the science and the technical details.

Choose this day whom you will serve...

Answer 5

Money.

Remember what they said in 'The Right Stuff' -- no money, no buck rogers.

Answer 6

On reaching his plane seat a man is surprised to see a parrot strapped in next to him. He asks the stewardess for coffee whereupon the parrot squawks, “And get me a whiskey you cow.” The stewardess, flustered, brings back a whiskey for the parrot and forgets the coffee.

When this omission is pointed out to her, the parrot drains its glass and bawls, “And get me another whiskey you *****.” Quite upset,the girl comes back shaking with another whiskey but still no coffee.

Unaccustomed to such slackness, the man tries the parrot's approach. “I've asked you twice for coffee. Go and get it now, or I'll give you a slap.”

Next moment, both he and the parrot have been wrenched up and thrown out of the emergency exit by two burly stewards. Plunging downwards the parrot turns to him and says, “For someone who can't fly, you're a cheeky b*****d.”

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Two planes arrived at flight control at exactly the same time. Flight control said, “Delta, Continental, you both arrived at the same time. Who wants to go first?”

The Continental pilot immediately heard, “Go ahead, Delta, I'll wait!”

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While cruising at 40,000 feet, the airplane shuddered and Mr. Benson looked out the window. “Good lord!” he screamed, “One of the engines just blew up!”

Other passengers left their seats and came running over. Suddenly the aircraft was rocked by a second blast as yet another engine exploded on the other side. The passengers were in a panic now, and even the stewardesses couldn't maintain order.

Just then, standing tall and smiling confidently, the pilot strode from the cockpit and assured everyone that there was nothing to worry about. His words and his demeanor made most of the passengers feel better, and they sat down as the pilot calmly walked to the door of the aircraft. There, he grabbed several packages from under the seats and began handing them to the flight attendants. Each crew member attatched the package to their backs.

“Say,” spoke up an alert passenger, “Aren't those parachutes?”

The pilot said they were. The passenger went on, “But I thought you said there was nothing to worry about?”

“There isn't,” replied the pilot as a third engine exploded. “We're going to get help.”

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“If Beethoven had been killed in a plane crash at the age of 22, it would have changed the history of music... and of aviation.” — Tom Stoppard



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One day at a busy airport, the passengers on a commercial airliner were seated, waiting for the cockpit crew to show up so they could get under way. The pilot and copilot finally appear in the rear of the plane, and begin walking up to the cockpit through the center aisle. Both appear to be blind. The pilot is using a white cane, bumping into passengers right and left as he stumbles down the aisle, and the copilot is using a guide dog. Both have their eyes covered with huge sunglasses.

At first the passengers do not react; thinking that it must be some sort of practical joke. However, after a few minutes the engines start revving and the airplane starts moving down the runway. The passengers look at each other with some uneasiness, whispering among themselves and looking desperately to the stewardesses for reassurance.

Then, the airplane starts accelerating rapidly and people begin panicking. Some passengers are praying, and as the plane gets closer and closer to the end of the runway, the voices are becoming more and more hysterical. Finally, when the airplane has less than 20 feet of runway left, there is a sudden change in the pitch of the shouts as everyone screams at once, and at the very last moment the airplane lifts off and is airborne.

Up in the cockpit, the copilot breathes a sigh of relief and turns to the pilot, “You know, one of these days the passengers aren't going to scream, and we're gonna get killed!”

Answer 7

pilots with lots of air on their head??

Answer 8

Magic.

Answer 9

Lift generated by the wings as the aircraft moves forward.

Answer 10

Power.   You can get a brick to fly with enough power. Although’ with good aerodynamics you don’t need power. Take your choice

Answer 11

Forget all this stuff about lift, Money makes planes fly. Period.

Answer 12

Paying passengers

Answer 13

http://www.aviation-history.com/theory/l...

this site should explain it for you, i learned a little from it myself, growing up i was always explained the bernoulli's principle, my dad is a pilot

Answer 14

The engines.

Answer 15

wing is rounded on top...takes longer for air to go over it as plane goes forward...because air moves faster over wing it makes lift....

Answer 16

I would simplify it by saying, the engine thrust pushing the plane through the air fast enough to have the wings lift the plane up in the air by the pilots inputs to the control surfaces on the wings.

Just want to add Thomaske`s tales are hilarious, Spilled my coffee everywhere, Thanks allot!

Answer 17

They have antigravity packs which we stold from the alilens.

Answer 18

Much more simpler than that.  It's Newtons third law.  

Wings moving forward front edge angled up push air down.

The air reacts with an equal and opposite push up.

More speed = more force;  when you gain enough speed, you fly.

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I was on a flight couple years ago, a through flight MIA to SFO stopping at DFW, in 1st class and we had a blind passenger traveling with his service dog.  At DFW he decided to stay on the plane, and one of the pilots (a real dog person) offered to walk to dog for him.  

It was a real interesting sight to see a pilot in uniform, sunglasses on, walking through the terminal grasping the harness of a seeing eye dog....

true story

Answer 19

aerodynamic lift

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lift_(force...

Answer 20

It is the way that the wing of an airplane is shaped.  The top of a wing has more curvature to it than the bottom, causing the top of the wing to be longer from front to back then the bottom.  This means that the air will travel faster under the wing and slower over the top of the wing therefore causing the airplane to lift.