Why will we experience 0g in a free falling airplane?

Question

I saw this on Discovery that if a airplane free falls, passengers inside will experience 0g, float up in the cabin if you are not strap down, but i failed to understand why is this so. What causes the effect?

Sorry if this is a stupid question.

Answer 1

pretty much because your falling too. so you become separated from the plane and it would be as if u are weightless that is till u hit the ground. theresprobably more to it then that since the cabin is pressurized but that the basics of it.

Answer 2

The airplane is falling at the same rate as you are around you--the affect is a sensory illusion. You are falling through space just as if you'd jumped out of the window, but because the airplane fuselage blocks the airflow, you get the illusion of being weightless--right up until you hit the ground.

Answer 3

The rate of acceleration due to gravity is approx. 9.81 m/s^2. If you are free falling at this rate of acceleration you will experience 0g because you will be moving as fast as gravity. It isnt entirely true what was said on the discovery channel because there is alot of air resistance imposed on a free falling body and especially in an aircraft because it is so big.  

Answer 4

gravity pull...

Answer 5

The plane dives at the same speed that you would free fall ( if you were not in the plane ) so while you're both going the same speed, it FEELS like you're experiencing 0 G's

Answer 6

g forces can counteract the pull of gravity.

Think about riding on a merry-go-round. If it's spinning really fast and you let go, you'll be flung off it by centrifugal force. It's sort of the same principal.

The Air Force and NASA train pilots and astronauts in specially designed planes which do what are called Parabolic Dives. These dives are not nose dives but are tightly controlled horizontal decents which give the passengers a true weightless experience for a few seconds.