In aeronautics , bracing comprises additional structural members which stiffen the functional airframe to give it rigidity and strength under load. Bracing may be applied both internally and externally, and may take the form of struts , which act in compression or tension as the need arises, and/or wires , which act only in tension.
92-446: A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft configuration with a single mainplane, in contrast to a biplane or other types of multiplanes , which have multiple planes. A monoplane has inherently the highest efficiency and lowest drag of any wing configuration and is the simplest to build. However, during the early years of flight, these advantages were offset by its greater weight and lower manoeuvrability, making it relatively rare until
184-513: A parachute drop zone . The gliders were treated as disposable, constructed from inexpensive materials such as wood, though a few were re-used. By the time of the Korean War , transport aircraft had become larger and more efficient so that even light tanks could be dropped by parachute, obsoleting gliders. Even after the development of powered aircraft, gliders continued to be used for aviation research . The NASA Paresev Rogallo flexible wing
276-460: A pilot , but some are unmanned and controlled either remotely or autonomously. Kites were used approximately 2,800 years ago in China, where kite building materials were available. Leaf kites may have been flown earlier in what is now Sulawesi , based on their interpretation of cave paintings on nearby Muna Island . By at least 549 AD paper kites were flying, as recorded that year, a paper kite
368-679: A Vickers Vimy in 1919 , followed months later by the U.S. Navy's NC-4 transatlantic flight ; culminating in May 1927 with Charles Lindbergh 's solo trans-Atlantic flight in the Spirit of St. Louis spurring ever-longer flight attempts. Airplanes had a presence in the major battles of World War II. They were an essential component of military strategies, such as the German Blitzkrieg or the American and Japanese aircraft carrier campaigns of
460-592: A World War I scout like the Fokker D.VII , one bay is usually enough. But for larger wings carrying greater payloads, several bays may be used. The two-seat Curtiss JN-4 Jenny is a two-bay biplane, while large heavy types were often multi-bay biplanes or triplanes – the earliest examples of the German Albatros B.I , and all production examples of the DFW B.I two-seater unarmed observation biplanes of 1914 were two of
552-617: A compromise between the high drag of a fully cross-braced structure and the high weight of a fully cantilevered wing. They are common on high-wing types such as the Cessna 152 and almost universal on parasol-winged types such as the Consolidated PBY Catalina . Less commonly, some low-winged monoplanes like the Piper Pawnee have had lift struts mounted above the wing, acting in compression in flight and in tension on
644-416: A few specialist types. Jet and rocket engines have even more power and all modern high-speed aircraft, especially supersonic types, have been monoplanes. Fixed-wing aircraft A fixed-wing aircraft is a heavier-than-air aircraft , such as an airplane , which is capable of flight using aerodynamic lift . Fixed-wing aircraft are distinct from rotary-wing aircraft (in which a rotor mounted on
736-416: A glider) made out of paper or paperboard. Model glider aircraft are models of aircraft using lightweight materials such as polystyrene and balsa wood . Designs range from simple glider aircraft to accurate scale models , some of which can be very large. Glide bombs are bombs with aerodynamic surfaces to allow a gliding flight path rather than a ballistic one. This enables stand-off aircraft to attack
828-400: A glider. Gliders and sailplanes that are used for the sport of gliding have high aerodynamic efficiency. The highest lift-to-drag ratio is 70:1, though 50:1 is common. After take-off, further altitude can be gained through the skillful exploitation of rising air. Flights of thousands of kilometers at average speeds over 200 km/h have been achieved. One small-scale example of a glider
920-626: A light aircraft, the configuration is significant because it offers superior visibility to the pilot. On light aircraft, shoulder-wings tend to be mounted further aft than a high wing, and so may need to be swept forward to maintain correct center of gravity . Examples of light aircraft with shoulder wings include the ARV Super2 , the Bölkow Junior , Saab Safari and the Barber Snark . A high wing has its upper surface on or above
1012-526: A limited propulsion system for takeoff, or to extend flight duration. As is the case with planes, gliders come in diverse forms with varied wings, aerodynamic efficiency, pilot location, and controls. Large gliders are most commonly born aloft by a tow-plane or by a winch . Military gliders have been used in combat to deliver troops and equipment, while specialized gliders have been used in atmospheric and aerodynamic research. Rocket-powered aircraft and spaceplanes have made unpowered landings similar to
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#17327759828901104-420: A lot of heavy reinforcement. Making the structure deeper allows it to be much lighter and stiffer. To reduce weight and air resistance, the structure may be made hollow, with bracing connecting the main parts of the airframe. For example, a high-wing monoplane may be given a diagonal lifting strut running from the bottom of the fuselage to a position far out towards the wingtip. This increases the effective depth of
1196-406: A pendulous fuselage which requires no wing dihedral for stability; and, by comparison with a low-wing, a shoulder-wing's limited ground effect reduces float on landing. Compared to a low-wing, shoulder-wing and high-wing configurations give increased propeller clearance on multi-engined aircraft. On a large aircraft, there is little practical difference between a shoulder wing and a high wing; but on
1288-470: A popular configuration for amphibians and small homebuilt and ultralight aircraft . Although the first successful aircraft were biplanes, the first attempts at heavier-than-air flying machines were monoplanes, and many pioneers continued to develop monoplane designs. For example, the first aeroplane to be put into production was the 1907 Santos-Dumont Demoiselle , while the Blériot XI flew across
1380-482: A single jury strut connecting the main strut to an intermediate point on the wing. A braced monoplane with 'V' struts such as the Fleet Canuck may have a complicated assembly of jury struts. Bracing, both internal and external, was extensively used in early aircraft to support the lightweight airframes demanded by the low engine powers and slow flying speeds then available. From the first Wright flyer of 1903,
1472-626: A spinning shaft generates lift), and ornithopters (in which the wings oscillate to generate lift). The wings of a fixed-wing aircraft are not necessarily rigid; kites, hang gliders , variable-sweep wing aircraft, and airplanes that use wing morphing are all classified as fixed wing. Gliding fixed-wing aircraft, including free-flying gliders and tethered kites , can use moving air to gain altitude. Powered fixed-wing aircraft (airplanes) that gain forward thrust from an engine include powered paragliders , powered hang gliders and ground effect vehicles . Most fixed-wing aircraft are operated by
1564-635: A streamlined fuselage and long narrow wings incorporating a high aspect ratio . Single-seat and two-seat gliders are available. Initially, training was done by short "hops" in primary gliders , which have no cockpit and minimal instruments. Since shortly after World War II, training is done in two-seat dual control gliders, but high-performance two-seaters can make long flights. Originally skids were used for landing, later replaced by wheels, often retractable. Gliders known as motor gliders are designed for unpowered flight, but can deploy piston , rotary , jet or electric engines . Gliders are classified by
1656-444: A stronger, lighter structure than one which is unbraced, but external bracing in particular adds drag which slows down the aircraft and raises considerably more design issues than internal bracing. Another disadvantage of bracing wires is that they require routine checking and adjustment, or rigging , even when located internally. During the early years of aviation, bracing was a universal feature of all forms of aeroplanes, including
1748-465: A successful passenger-carrying glider in 1853. In 1856, Frenchman Jean-Marie Le Bris made the first powered flight, had his glider L'Albatros artificiel towed by a horse along a beach. In 1884, American John J. Montgomery made controlled flights in a glider as a part of a series of gliders he built between 1883 and 1886. Other aviators who made similar flights at that time were Otto Lilienthal , Percy Pilcher , and protégés of Octave Chanute . In
1840-452: A target from a distance. A kite is a tethered aircraft held aloft by wind that blows over its wing(s). High pressure below the wing deflects the airflow downwards. This deflection generates horizontal drag in the direction of the wind. The resultant force vector from the lift and drag force components is opposed by the tension of the tether . Kites are mostly flown for recreational purposes, but have many other uses. Early pioneers such as
1932-408: A two-bay biplane, has only one bay, but has the midpoints of the rigging braced with additional struts; however, these are not structurally contiguous from top to bottom wing. The Sopwith 1 + 1 ⁄ 2 Strutter has a W-shape cabane; however, as it does not connect the wings to each other, it does not add to the number of bays. Where an aircraft has a wing running clear above the main fuselage,
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#17327759828902024-402: A typical biplane was significantly affecting performance, while the heavier but sleeker strut-braced parasol monoplane was becoming practicable. For a period this type of monoplane became the design of choice. Although the strut-braced high-wing monoplane was outpaced during the 1930s by the true cantilever monoplane, it has remained in use throughout the postwar era, in roles where light weight
2116-488: A wing of a given size, the weight reduction allows it to fly slower and with a lower-powered and more economical engine. For this reason, all monoplane wings in the pioneer era were braced and most were up until the early 1930s. However, the exposed struts or wires create additional drag, lowering aerodynamic efficiency and reducing the maximum speed. High-speed and long-range designs tend to be pure cantilevers, while low-speed short-range types are often given bracing. Besides
2208-604: Is a bracing component stiff enough to resist these forces whether they place it under compression or tension. A wire is a bracing component able only to resist tension, going slack under compression, and consequently is nearly always used in conjunction with struts. A square frame made of solid bars is not rigid but tends to bend at the corners. Bracing it with an extra diagonal bar would be heavy. A wire would be much lighter but would stop it collapsing only one way. To hold it rigid, two cross-bracing wires are needed. This method of cross-bracing can be seen clearly on early biplanes, where
2300-404: Is a lightweight, free-flying, foot-launched glider with no rigid body. The pilot is suspended in a harness below a hollow fabric wing whose shape is formed by its suspension lines. Air entering vents in the front of the wing and the aerodynamic forces of the air flowing over the outside power the craft. Paragliding is most often a recreational activity. A paper plane is a toy aircraft (usually
2392-408: Is capable of taking off and landing (alighting) on water. Seaplanes that can also operate from dry land are a subclass called amphibian aircraft . Seaplanes and amphibians divide into two categories: float planes and flying boats . Many forms of glider may include a small power plant. These include: A ground effect vehicle (GEV) flies close to the terrain, making use of the ground effect –
2484-643: Is more important than high speed or long range. These include light cabin aircraft where downward visibility is also important, and small transports. Braced high-aspect-ratio wings were used by French Hurel-Dubois (now part of Safran ) with the Hurel-Dubois HD.10 demonstrator in 1948, and then the HD.31 /32/34 airliners, still used by the French Institut Geographique National until the early 1980s. A turbojet-powered HD.45
2576-526: Is sport and recreation. Gliders were developed in the 1920s for recreational purposes. As pilots began to understand how to use rising air, sailplane gliders were developed with a high lift-to-drag ratio . These allowed the craft to glide to the next source of " lift ", increasing their range. This gave rise to the popular sport of gliding . Early gliders were built mainly of wood and metal, later replaced by composite materials incorporating glass, carbon or aramid fibers. To minimize drag , these types have
2668-408: Is that the fuselage is closer to the ground which eases cargo loading, especially for aircraft with a rear-fuselage cargo door. Military cargo aircraft are predominantly high-wing designs with a rear cargo door. A parasol wing is not directly attached to the fuselage but held above it, supported by either cabane struts or a pylon. Additional bracing may be provided by struts or wires extending from
2760-649: Is the paper airplane. An ordinary sheet of paper can be folded into an aerodynamic shape fairly easily; its low mass relative to its surface area reduces the required lift for flight, allowing it to glide some distance. Gliders and sailplanes share many design elements and aerodynamic principles with powered aircraft. For example, the Horten H.IV was a tailless flying wing glider, and the delta-winged Space Shuttle orbiter glided during its descent phase. Many gliders adopt similar control surfaces and instruments as airplanes. The main application of modern glider aircraft
2852-569: The English Channel in 1909. Throughout 1909–1910, Hubert Latham set multiple altitude records in his Antoinette IV monoplane, eventually reaching 1,384 m (4,541 ft). The equivalent German language term is Eindecker , as in the mid-wing Fokker Eindecker fighter of 1915 which for a time dominated the skies in what became known as the " Fokker scourge ". The German military Idflieg aircraft designation system prior to 1918 prefixed monoplane type designations with an E , until
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2944-550: The FAI for competitions into glider competition classes mainly on the basis of wingspan and flaps. A class of ultralight sailplanes, including some known as microlift gliders and some known as airchairs, has been defined by the FAI based on weight. They are light enough to be transported easily, and can be flown without licensing in some countries. Ultralight gliders have performance similar to hang gliders , but offer some crash safety as
3036-562: The Fokker D.VIII and Morane-Saulnier AI in the later part of the First World War. A parasol wing also provides a high mounting point for engines and during the interwar period was popular on flying boats, which need to lift the propellers clear of spray. Examples include the Martin M-130 , Dornier Do 18 and the Consolidated PBY Catalina . Compared to a biplane , a parasol wing has less bracing and lower drag. It remains
3128-874: The Westland IV or the undercarriage as on the Scottish Aviation Twin Pioneer . Lift struts remain common on small (2/4-seat) high-wing light aircraft in the ultralight and light-sport categories. Larger examples include the Short 360 36-passenger aircraft and the de Havilland Twin Otter 19-seater. A lift strut can be so long and thin that it bends too easily. Jury struts are small subsidiary struts used to stiffen it. They prevent problems such as resonant vibration and buckling under compressive loads. Jury struts come in many configurations. On monoplanes with one main strut, there may be just
3220-600: The Westland Lysander used extruded I section beams of light alloy, onto which were screwed a fore and aft pair of duralumin fairings. Later aircraft have had streamlined struts formed directly from shaped metal, like the extruded light alloy struts of the Auster AOP.9 , or from composites, for example the carbon fibre lift struts of the Remos GX eLITE . Designers have adopted different methods of improving
3312-486: The Wright Brothers and J.W. Dunne sometimes flew an aircraft as a kite in order to confirm its flight characteristics, before adding an engine and flight controls. Kites have been used for signaling, for delivery of munitions , and for observation , by lifting an observer above the field of battle, and by using kite aerial photography . Bracing (aeronautics)#Cabane struts In general, bracing allows
3404-534: The Wright Flyer III was capable of fully controllable, stable flight for substantial periods. In 1906, Brazilian inventor Alberto Santos Dumont designed, built and piloted an aircraft that set the first world record recognized by the Aéro-Club de France by flying the 14 bis 220 metres (720 ft) in less than 22 seconds. The flight was certified by the FAI. The Bleriot VIII design of 1908
3496-450: The braced parasol wing became popular on fighter aircraft, although few arrived in time to see combat. It remained popular throughout the 1920s. On flying boats with a shallow hull, a parasol wing allows the engines to be mounted above the spray from the water when taking off and landing. This arrangement was popular on flying boats during the 1930s; a late example being the Consolidated PBY Catalina . It died out when taller hulls became
3588-412: The monoplanes and biplanes , which were then equally common. Today, bracing in the form of lift struts is still used for some light commercial designs where a high wing and light weight are more important than ultimate performance. Bracing works by creating a triangulated truss structure which resists bending or twisting. By comparison, an unbraced cantilever structure bends easily unless it carries
3680-455: The 1890s, Lawrence Hargrave conducted research on wing structures and developed a box kite that lifted the weight of a man. His designs were widely adopted. He also developed a type of rotary aircraft engine, but did not create a powered fixed-wing aircraft. Sir Hiram Maxim built a craft that weighed 3.5 tons, with a 110-foot (34-meter) wingspan powered by two 360-horsepower (270-kW) steam engines driving two propellers. In 1894, his machine
3772-466: The 18th and 19th centuries kites were used for scientific research. Around 400 BC in Greece , Archytas was reputed to have designed and built the first self-propelled flying device, shaped like a bird and propelled by a jet of what was probably steam, said to have flown some 200 m (660 ft). This machine may have been suspended during its flight. One of the earliest attempts with gliders
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3864-724: The 1930s, the cantilever monoplane was fast becoming the standard configuration for a fixed-wing aircraft. Advanced monoplane fighter-aircraft designs were mass-produced for military services around the world in both the Soviet Union and the United States in the early–mid 1930s, with the Polikarpov I-16 and the Boeing P-26 Peashooter respectively. Most military aircraft of WWII were monoplanes, as have been virtually all aircraft since, except for
3956-457: The 1930s. Since then, the monoplane has been the most common form for a fixed-wing aircraft. The inherent efficiency of the monoplane is best achieved in the cantilever wing, which carries all structural forces internally. However, to fly at practical speeds the wing must be made thin, which requires a heavy structure to make it strong and stiff enough. External bracing can be used to improve structural efficiency, reducing weight and cost. For
4048-540: The Pacific. Military gliders were developed and used in several campaigns, but were limited by the high casualty rate encountered. The Focke-Achgelis Fa 330 Bachstelze (Wagtail) rotor kite of 1942 was notable for its use by German U-boats . Before and during the war, British and German designers worked on jet engines . The first jet aircraft to fly, in 1939, was the German Heinkel He 178 . In 1943,
4140-506: The United States and Canada in 1919. The so-called Golden Age of Aviation occurred between the two World Wars, during which updated interpretations of earlier breakthroughs. Innovations include Hugo Junkers ' all-metal air frames in 1915 leading to multi-engine aircraft of up to 60+ meter wingspan sizes by the early 1930s, adoption of the mostly air-cooled radial engine as a practical aircraft power plant alongside V-12 liquid-cooled aviation engines, and longer and longer flights – as with
4232-562: The advent of more powerful engines in 1909, but bracing remained essential for any practical design, even on monoplanes up until World War I when they became unpopular and braced biplanes reigned supreme. From 1911, the British researcher Harris Booth working at the National Physics Laboratory and the engineer Richard Fairey , then working for J.W. Dunne 's Blair Atholl Aeroplane Syndicate, began to develop and apply
4324-523: The aerodynamics of the strut-wing and strut-body connections, using similar approaches to those used in interplane struts. Sometimes the streamlining is tapered away close to the wing, as on the Farman F.190; other designs have an extended, faired foot, for example the Skyeton K-10 Swift . Lift struts are sometimes combined with other functions, for example helping to support the engines as on
4416-479: The aircraft more manoeuvrable, as on the Spitfire ; but aircraft that value stability over manoeuvrability may then need some dihedral . A feature of the low-wing position is its significant ground effect , giving the plane a tendency to float farther before landing. Conversely, this ground effect permits shorter takeoffs. A mid wing is mounted midway up the fuselage. The carry-through spar structure can reduce
4508-408: The airflow. N-struts replace the incidence wires by a third strut running diagonally from the top of one strut to the bottom of the other in a pair. V-struts converge from separate attachment points on upper wing to a single point on the lower wing. They are often used for the sesquiplane wing, in which the lower wing has a considerably smaller chord than the upper wing. I-struts replaces
4600-488: The airframe both light and strong, the bracing is fitted externally. This was common in early aircraft due to the limited engine power available and the need for light weight in order to fly at all. As engine powers rose steadily through the 1920s and 30s, much heavier airframes became practicable, and most designers abandoned external bracing in order to allow for increased speed. Nearly all biplane aircraft have their upper and lower planes connected by interplane struts, with
4692-524: The approval of the Fokker D.VIII fighter from its former "E.V" designation. However, the success of the Fokker was short-lived, and World War I was dominated by biplanes. Towards the end of the war, the parasol monoplane became popular and successful designs were produced into the 1920s. Nonetheless, relatively few monoplane types were built between 1914 and the late 1920s, compared with the number of biplanes. The reasons for this were primarily practical. With
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#17327759828904784-581: The basic loads imposed by lift and gravity, bracing wires must also carry powerful inertial loads generated during manoeuvres, such as the increased load on the landing wires at the moment of touchdown. Bracing wires must be carefully rigged to maintain the correct length and tension. In flight the wires tend to stretch under load, and on landing some may become slack. Regular rigging checks are required and any necessary adjustments made before every flight. Rigging adjustments may also be used to set and maintain wing dihedral and angle of incidence , usually with
4876-464: The cabane is replaced by a single thick, streamlined pylon. On a high-wing aircraft, a lift strut connects an outboard point on the wing with a point lower on the fuselage to form a rigid triangular structure. While in flight the strut acts in tension to carry wing lift to the fuselage and hold the wing level, while when back on the ground it acts in compression to hold the wing up. For aircraft of moderate engine power and speed, lift struts represent
4968-464: The engineering analysis of individual bays in a biplane, to calculate the structural forces and use the minimal amount of material in each bay to achieve maximum strength. Analytical techniques such as this led to lighter and stronger aircraft and became widely adopted. At the same time, the amount of bracing could be progressively reduced. At low speeds a thin wire causes very little drag and early flying machines were sometimes called "bird cages" due to
5060-729: The first operational jet fighter, the Messerschmitt Me 262 , went into service with the German Luftwaffe . Later in the war the British Gloster Meteor entered service, but never saw action – top air speeds for that era went as high as 1,130 km/h (700 mph), with the early July 1944 unofficial record flight of the German Me 163B V18 rocket fighter prototype. In October 1947, the Bell X-1
5152-400: The fuselage sides. The first parasol monoplanes were adaptations of shoulder wing monoplanes, since raising a shoulder mounted wing above the fuselage greatly improved visibility downwards, which was useful for reconnaissance roles, as with the widely used Morane-Saulnier L . The parasol wing allows for an efficient design with good pilot visibility, and was adopted for some fighters such as
5244-451: The fuselage was no more than a braced framework and even fore-aft diagonal bracing was used to hold the wings at right angles to it. Some very early aircraft used struts made from bamboo . Most designs employed streamlined struts made either from spruce or ash wood, selected for its strength and light weight. Metal struts were also used, and both wood and metal continue in use today. The need for fore-aft wing bracing disappeared with
5336-416: The fuselage. This could be used both to provide some protection to the pilot if the craft overturned on the ground, and also for the attachment of landing wires which ran out in a slightly inclined vee to fore and aft points near the wing tips. In parasol wing monoplanes the wing passes above the fuselage and is joined to the fuselage by cabane struts, similarly to the upper wing of a biplane. On some types
5428-433: The general variations in wing configuration such as tail position and use of bracing, the main distinction between types of monoplane is where the wing is mounted vertically on the fuselage . A low wing is one which is located on or near the bottom of the fuselage. Placing the wing low allows good visibility upwards and frees the central fuselage from the wing spar carry-through. By reducing pendulum stability, it makes
5520-543: The ground. Sometimes each wing has just a single lift strut, as on the Cessna 152, but they often come in pairs, sometimes parallel as on the Catalina, sometimes splayed or as V-form pairs (e.g. Auster Autocrat ) joined to the fuselage at a single point. Many more complicated arrangements have been used, often with two primary lift struts augmented by auxiliary interconnections known as jury struts between each other or to
5612-400: The help of a clinometer and plumb-bob . Individual wires are fitted with turnbuckles or threaded-end fittings so that they can be readily adjusted. Once set, the adjuster is locked in place. Internal bracing was most significant during the early days of aeronautics when airframes were literally frames, at best covered in doped fabric, which had no strength of its own. Wire cross-bracing
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#17327759828905704-559: The interaction between the wings and the surface. Some GEVs are able to fly higher out of ground effect (OGE) when required – these are classed as powered fixed-wing aircraft. A glider is a heavier-than-air craft whose free flight does not require an engine. A sailplane is a fixed-wing glider designed for soaring – gaining height using updrafts of air and to fly for long periods. Gliders are mainly used for recreation but have found use for purposes such as aerodynamics research, warfare and spacecraft recovery. Motor gliders are equipped with
5796-414: The low engine powers and airspeeds available, the wings of a monoplane needed to be large in order to create enough lift while a biplane could have two smaller wings and so be made smaller and lighter. Towards the end of the First World War, the inherent high drag of the biplane was beginning to restrict performance. Engines were not yet powerful enough to make the heavy cantilever-wing monoplane viable, and
5888-409: The norm during World War II, allowing a high wing to be attached directly to the hull. As ever-increasing engine powers made the weight of all-metal construction and the cantilever wing more practical — first pioneered together by the revolutionary German Junkers J 1 factory demonstrator in 1915–16 — they became common during the post–World War I period, the day of the braced wing passed, and by
5980-477: The number of wires present. However, as speeds rise the wire must be made thinner to avoid drag while the forces it carries increase. The steady increase in engine power allowed an equally steady increase in weight, necessitating less bracing. Special bracing wires with flat or aerofoil sections were also developed in attempts to further reduce drag. The German professor Hugo Junkers was seriously interested in doing away with drag-inducing struts and rigging around
6072-693: The pilot can strap into an upright seat within a deform-able structure. Landing is usually on one or two wheels which distinguishes these craft from hang gliders. Most are built by individual designers and hobbyists. Military gliders were used during World War II for carrying troops ( glider infantry ) and heavy equipment to combat zones. The gliders were towed into the air and most of the way to their target by transport planes, e.g. C-47 Dakota , or by one-time bombers that had been relegated to secondary activities, e.g. Short Stirling . The advantage over paratroopers were that heavy equipment could be landed and that troops were quickly assembled rather than dispersed over
6164-414: The pilot is suspended in a harness suspended from the air frame , and exercises control by shifting body weight in opposition to a control frame. Hang gliders are typically made of an aluminum alloy or composite -framed fabric wing. Pilots can soar for hours, gain thousands of meters of altitude in thermal updrafts, perform aerobatics, and glide cross-country for hundreds of kilometers. A paraglider
6256-429: The same forces of lift and gravity. Many later monoplanes, beginning in 1915 , have used cantilever wings with their lift bracing within the wing to avoid the drag penalties of external wires and struts . In many early wire-braced monoplanes , e.g. the Blériot XI and Fokker Eindecker (both wing warping designs), dorsal and sometimes ventral strut systems or cabanes were placed either above, or above and below
6348-474: The start of World War I, and by mid-1915 his firm had designed the Junkers J 1 all-metal "technology demonstrator" monoplane, possessing no external bracing for its thick-airfoil cantilever wing design, which could fly at just over 160 km/h with an inline-six piston engine of just 120 horsepower. By the end of World War I, engine powers and airspeeds had risen enough that the drag caused by bracing wires on
6440-452: The top of the fuselage. It shares many advantages and disadvantages with the shoulder wing, but on a light aircraft, the high wing has poorer upwards visibility. On light aircraft such as the Cessna 152 , the wing is usually located above the cabin, so that the wing spar passes over the occupants' heads, leaving the wing in the ideal fore-aft position. An advantage of the high-wing configuration
6532-510: The two components are often connected by cabane struts running up from the top of the fuselage or crew cabin to the wing centre section. Such a wing is usually also braced elsewhere, with the cabane struts forming part of the overall bracing scheme. Because cabane struts often carry engine thrust to the upper wing to overcome its drag, the loads along each diagonal between fore and aft struts are unequal and they are often formed as N-struts. They may also have cross-braced torsion wires to help stop
6624-467: The upper wing running across above the fuselage and connected to it by shorter cabane struts. These struts divide the wings into bays which are braced by diagonal wires. The flying wires run upwards and outwards from the lower wing, while the landing wires run downwards and outwards from the upper wing. The resulting combination of struts and wires is a rigid box girder -like structure independent of its fuselage mountings. Interplane struts hold apart
6716-510: The use of aircraft as weapons and observation platforms. The earliest known aerial victory with a synchronized machine gun -armed fighter aircraft occurred in 1915, flown by German Luftstreitkräfte Lieutenant Kurt Wintgens . Fighter aces appeared; the greatest (by number of air victories) was Manfred von Richthofen . Alcock and Brown crossed the Atlantic non-stop for the first time in 1919. The first commercial flights traveled between
6808-439: The useful fuselage volume near its centre of gravity, where space is often in most demand. A shoulder wing (a category between high-wing and mid-wing) is a configuration whereby the wing is mounted near the top of the fuselage but not on the very top. It is so called because it sits on the "shoulder" of the fuselage, rather than on the pilot's shoulder. Shoulder-wings and high-wings share some characteristics, namely: they support
6900-417: The usual pair of struts by a single, thicker streamlined strut with its ends extended fore and aft along the wing. The span of a wing between two sets of interplane or cabane struts is called a bay . Wings are described by the number of bays on each side. For example, a biplane with cabane struts and one set of interplane struts on each side of the aircraft is a single-bay biplane. For a small type such as
6992-490: The very few single-engined, three-bay biplanes used during World War I . Some biplane wings are braced with struts leaned sideways with the bays forming a zigzag Warren truss . Examples include the Ansaldo SVA series of single-engined high-speed reconnaissance biplanes of World War I, and the early World War II-era Fiat CR.42 Falco . Other variations have also been used. The SPAD S.XIII fighter, while appearing to be
7084-481: The wing or the fuselage. Each pair of the inverted V struts of the Pawnee, for example, is assisted by a pair of vertical support struts. From early times these lift struts have been streamlined , often by enclosing metal load bearing members in shaped casings. The Farman F.190 , for example, had its high wings joined to the lower fuselage by parallel duralumin tubes enclosed in streamlined spruce fairings and
7176-422: The wing root to the height of the fuselage, making it much stiffer for little increase in weight. Typically, the ends of bracing struts are joined to the main internal structural components such as a wing spar or a fuselage bulkhead, and bracing wires are attached close by. Bracing may be used to resist all the various forces which occur in an airframe, including lift, weight, drag and twisting or torsion. A strut
7268-405: The wing twisting. A few biplane designs, like the British 1917 Bristol Fighter two-seat fighter/escort, had its fuselage clear of the lower wing as well as the upper one, using ventral cabane struts to accomplish such a design feature. Early monoplanes relied entirely on external wire bracing, either directly to the fuselage or to kingposts above it and undercarriage struts below to resist
7360-498: The wings and interplane struts form a rectangle which is cross-braced by wires. Another way of arranging a rigid structure is to make the cross pieces solid enough to act in compression and then to connect their ends with an outer diamond acting in tension. This method was once common on monoplanes, where the wing and a central cabane or a pylon form the cross members while wire bracing forms the outer diamond. Most commonly found on biplane and other multiplane aircraft, wire bracing
7452-418: The wings of a biplane or multiplane, also helping to maintain the correct angle of incidence for the connected wing panels. Parallel struts : The most common configuration is for two struts to be placed in parallel, one behind the other. These struts will usually be braced by "incidence wires" running diagonally between them. These wires resist twisting of the wing which would affect its angle of incidence to
7544-463: The wings up when they are not generating lift. (The wires connecting a basket or gondola to a balloon are also called flying wires.) Thinner incidence wires are sometimes run diagonally between fore and aft interplane struts to stop the wing twisting and changing its angle of incidence to the fuselage. In some pioneer aircraft, wing bracing wires were also run diagonally fore and aft to prevent distortion under side loads such as when turning. Besides
7636-581: The world. Some of the hundreds of versions found other purposes, like the AC-47 , a Vietnam War era gunship, which is still used in the Colombian Air Force . An airplane (aeroplane or plane) is a powered fixed-wing aircraft propelled by thrust from a jet engine or propeller . Planes come in many sizes, shapes, and wing configurations. Uses include recreation, transportation of goods and people, military, and research. A seaplane (hydroplane)
7728-415: Was also common on early monoplanes . Unlike struts, bracing wires always act in tension. The thickness and profile of a wire affect the drag it causes, especially at higher speeds. Wires may be made of multi-stranded cable, a single strand of piano wire , or aerofoil sectioned steel. Bracing wires primarily divide into flying wires which hold the wings down when flying and landing wires which hold
7820-421: Was an early aircraft design that had the modern monoplane tractor configuration . It had movable tail surfaces controlling both yaw and pitch, a form of roll control supplied either by wing warping or by ailerons and controlled by its pilot with a joystick and rudder bar. It was an important predecessor of his later Bleriot XI Channel -crossing aircraft of the summer of 1909. World War I served initiated
7912-441: Was by 11th-century monk Eilmer of Malmesbury , which failed. A 17th-century account states that 9th-century poet Abbas Ibn Firnas made a similar attempt, though no earlier sources record this event. In 1799, Sir George Cayley laid out the concept of the modern airplane as a fixed-wing machine with systems for lift, propulsion, and control. Cayley was building and flying models of fixed-wing aircraft as early as 1803, and built
8004-400: Was developed to investigate alternative methods of recovering spacecraft. Although this application was abandoned, publicity inspired hobbyists to adapt the flexible-wing airfoil for hang gliders. Initial research into many types of fixed-wing craft, including flying wings and lifting bodies was also carried out using unpowered prototypes. A hang glider is a glider aircraft in which
8096-421: Was extensively used to stiffen such airframes, both in the fabric-covered wings and in the fuselage, which was often left bare. Routine rigging of the wires was needed to maintain structural stiffness against bending and torsion. A particular problem for internal wires is access in the cramped interior of the fuselage. Often, providing sufficient internal bracing would make a design too heavy, so in order to make
8188-574: Was in commercial service for more than 50 years, from 1958 to 2010. The Boeing 747 was the world's largest passenger aircraft from 1970 until it was surpassed by the Airbus A380 in 2005. The most successful aircraft is the Douglas DC-3 and its military version, the C-47 , a medium sized twin engine passenger or transport aircraft that has been in service since 1936 and is still used throughout
8280-550: Was tested with overhead rails to prevent it from rising. The test showed that it had enough lift to take off. The craft was uncontrollable, and Maxim abandoned work on it. The Wright brothers ' flights in 1903 with their Flyer I are recognized by the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI), the standard setting and record-keeping body for aeronautics , as "the first sustained and controlled heavier-than-air powered flight". By 1905,
8372-660: Was the first aircraft to exceed the speed of sound, flown by Chuck Yeager . In 1948–49, aircraft transported supplies during the Berlin Blockade . New aircraft types, such as the B-52 , were produced during the Cold War . The first jet airliner , the de Havilland Comet , was introduced in 1952, followed by the Soviet Tupolev Tu-104 in 1956. The Boeing 707 , the first widely successful commercial jet,
8464-446: Was used as a message for a rescue mission. Ancient and medieval Chinese sources report kites used for measuring distances, testing the wind, lifting men, signaling, and communication for military operations. Kite stories were brought to Europe by Marco Polo towards the end of the 13th century, and kites were brought back by sailors from Japan and Malaysia in the 16th and 17th centuries. Although initially regarded as curiosities, by
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