Theory of Flight

6.05 Lift and Drag

References:
Transport Canada Study and Reference Guide Glider Pilot
FTGU pages 91-98
 Review

1. Name the 4 forces acting on an aircraft.

2. What are Newton’s 3 laws?

3. Is an aircraft considered to be in a state of

equilibrium when it is on the ground.
 6.05 Lift & Drag
• MTPs:
– Bernoulli’s Principle- how lift is created
– Airfoil terms
– Angle of attack versus lift
– Angle of Incidence
– Types of airfoils
– Types of Drag
– Wingtip Vortices
– Streamlining
 Bernoulli’s Principle
• Bernoulli’s Principle
– An increase in the speed of a fluid occurs
simultaneously with a decrease in pressure or
a decrease in the fluid's potential energy.
 Bernoulli’s Principle

Speed Pressure

Speed Pressure
 Bernoulli’s Principle
– Airfoils are shaped in a way to manipulate air
pressure based on Bernoulli’s principle.
– Air moves faster over the upper surface of the wing,
decreasing pressure (or increasing suction)
– Air moves slower over the lower surface of the wing
and creates a higher pressure, or pushing force.
 Airfoil Terms
Terms related to airfoils
• Relative Airflow
• Angle of Attack
• Centre of Pressure
 Relative Airflow

– The direction of the airflow with respect to the wing.

– It is created by the movement of the airplane as well as the
movement of air.
– Relative airflow is usually opposite to the flight path.
– Relative airflow itself is not related to lift
 Angle of Attack

– The angle at which the airfoil meets the

relative airflow
 Centre of Pressure
• Is the average of the pressure on an airfoil
– Sum of the distributed pressures on the airfoil acting
through a single straight line
• Moves forward on an airfoil as the angle of attack is
increased
Centre of Pressure
 A of A versus Lift
• Now we know how we get lift but how much can we get?

• One factor affecting lift is Angle of Attack

– As the angle of attack increases, what happens to lift?

Lift Increases

– BUT… As the angle of attack increases, what

happens to drag?

Drag Increases
 A of A versus Lift

Lift/
Drag

Angle of
Attack
 Angle of Incidence
– The angle of incidence is the angle between
the mean aerodynamic chord of the wing and
the longitudinal axis of the aircraft
– The angle of incidence impacts forward
visibility, take-off and landing characteristics,
and drag in level flight
 Types of Airfoils
• Airfoil
A two-dimensional surface designed to obtain a reaction from
the air through which it moves.
The shape of an airfoil will affect how air flows over the wing

Airfoil – 2D vs. Wing – 3D

 Types of Airfoils
• What are some functions
of airfoils?
– Create lift
– Create thrust
– Attachment point for the
control surfaces (including
flaps, slots, slats, etc)
– House fuel tanks and
instrument components
– Stability
Confirmation Check
 Confirmation
1. Label where the high pressure and low pressure are:

2. Fill in the blanks

__________________: The angle at which the airfoil meets the
relative airflow
__________________: airflow with respect to the wing
__________________:the average of the pressure on an airfoil
 Confirmation

3. Lift acts 90o to the ________________.

4. Bernoulli’s principle states that:

An ____________ (increase/decrease) in the speed of a fluid occurs
simultaneously with a _____________________
(increase/decrease) in pressure or a _______________
(increase/decrease) in the fluid's potential energy

5. As lift increases, drag _______________.

 Drag
– Is the resistance an airplane experiences in
moving forward through the air
 Types of Drag
There are 2 main types of Drag:

1. Parasite Drag– This drag is further broken

down
– Form drag
– Skin Friction

2. Induced Drag
 Parasite Drag
Drag of all those parts the airplane which
DO NOT contribute to lift
– This drag is hard to eliminate but it can be
minimized
• Form drag is caused by the shape of the
aircraft
– Landing gear
– Antennas
– Struts
– Wing tip fuel tanks
 Parasite Drag
• Skin Friction
– The tendency of air
flowing over the body
to cling to its surface

– What causes it to
resist motion?
• Ice on the wings
• Dirt build up
 Induced Drag
– Caused by those parts of an airplane which
are active in producing lift
– Cannot be eliminated

Lift Drag
 Induced Drag
• Induced drag can be reduced with a high
aspect ratio
 Wing Tip Vortices
• Over the top of the wing the
airflow goes inward Due to the
• Under the bottom of the wing pressure changes
the airflow moves outward

This creates a swirling motion off the wing tip called a vortex
 Streamlining
• The less drag you have…
– Flying a glider: the further you can
fly
– Flying an airplane: the less fuel you
use

• Therefore streamlining is important

– A design device by which a body is
shaped to minimize drag
 Confirmation
1. Fill in the diagram

2. Is it possible to eliminate induced drag? Why

or why not?
Wingtip Vortices