Why do kites fly?

Question

why do tetrohedral kites fly?

Answer 1

I think the two great answers above me pretty much sum it all up; choose between those two~!

Answer 2

The forces on anything in flight are lift, drag, thrust, and gravity.

Lift is produced by a vacuum on the upper surface of the airfoil surfaces. The air on the top travels faster than the air on the bottom surface. This counteracts the force of gravity.

The air traveling over the kite cause a friction drag on it, and the kite would go tumbling away with the wind if not for the kite string counteracting the drag force.

Tetrahedral kites have many airfoil surfaces, and so more drag.

Answer 3

I think the aerofoil analogy is valid that is why the angle of attack is important for stable flight

Answer 4

Good question. Kites don't technically fly. They rise due to wind deflection. Almost everyone has held a 4 x 8 foot of paneling, of some sort, over their heads on a windy day with the leading edge higher than the trailing edge. If you can keep your balance, the wind deflects under the panel and for a few moments you feel a few pounds lighter. The panel wants to rise in the wind. Kites do this too by deflecting wind down, allowing the kite to rise.  The kite tail acts as a stabilizer to maintain orientation of the kite, or attitude. And the string is the anchor which keeps wind pressure against the kite.