Drag
Drag can both increase and decrease with airspeed. Understanding how drag changes with airspeed is critical to airmanship.
Lesson Notes
Drag is the force acting against thrust and forward motion. It is caused by a variety of factors, but generally can be broken down into drag created as a by-product of lift (induced drag) and drag that is not created as a by-product of lift (parasite drag).
Flashcard Questions
If you increase your speed at L/D Max, what happens to your drag?
If you are below L/D Max and speed up, what happens to your drag?
Is the drag created by landing gear sticking out into the air flow considered parasite drag or induced drag?
What determines an airplane’s best glide airspeed?
Down low near the ground, wingtip vortices are often broken up by the ground before they can fully induce drag on the wings. What effect might this have for airplanes landing or taking off?
Slow flight is a maneuver in which the pilot flies the airplane with flaps (and gear if, retractable) in the down position and sustains level flight at a slow airspeed. Often, slow flight requires a large amount of power to maintain level flight and sufficient airspeed. Why is this?