Recently in technology class we have been learning about the forces of flight and how that affects the flight of an airplane. We started off by building paper airplanes. After building my first paper airplane, I decided that the wings needed to be thinner and the tip needed to have a sharper point. So I built a second one, and it flew much farther and faster. Here is what it looked like:
Then, we learned about the four forces of flight:Â thrust, lift, drag, and weight. Thrust is the force that we give the paper airplane when we throw it forwards. While the airplane is flying, the air is providing upward lift on it. But there is also wind pushing back against the airplane, which is called drag. The last force is the weight force. Weight comes from gravity, which pulls the airplane downwards.
Finally, we learned about different wing and airplane designs. The wing location, wing shape, and nose length all play a big role in how well the airplane flies. I have decided that for my wooden airplane design I want the wings to placed in the middle, so it can be be a compromise of stable and quick to respond. I also want the wings to be rounded, so that it can fly better in unstable air. Lastly, I want the nose length to be a compromise of both long and short, so that it can fly for a longer period of time but also recover easily from a stall.
I found this lesson very fascinating and fun and I can’t wait to build my wooden airplane!