The Four Forces of Flight
Learning Objective
I can explain how the four forces of flight (lift, weight, thrust, and drag) affect an airplane.
Key Concepts
The four key forces that allow airplanes to fly are lift, weight, drag, and thrust.
Airplanes generate lift because of the shape of their wings, called an airfoil, which causes air to move faster above the wing than below it.
To overcome drag and move forward, airplanes use thrust generated by their engines.
Practice Questions
This lesson includes 3 practice questions to reinforce learning.
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1. Which of the following forces opposes thrust?
2. Explain how the shape of an airplane wing (airfoil) contributes to lift.
3. Describe how thrust and drag interact to affect an airplane's motion. What happens when thrust is greater than drag? What happens when drag is greater than thrust?
Educational Video
How Airplanes Work: A Simple Explanation for Beginners
Science ABC