Fixed-wing aircraft

A fixed-wing aircraft is a heavier-than-air aircraft, such as an airplane, which can fly using aerodynamic lift. These aircraft are different from rotary-wing aircraft, where a rotor creates lift, and from ornithopters, which move their wings up and down to fly. The wings on a fixed-wing aircraft may not always be stiff; even kites, hang gliders, variable-sweep wing aircraft, and airplanes that use wing morphing are considered fixed wing.

A Boeing 737 airliner is an example of a fixed-wing aircraft

Gliding fixed-wing aircraft, such as free-flying gliders and tethered kites, can rise in the air by using moving wind. Powered fixed-wing aircraft, like airplanes, get forward thrust from an engine. These include powered paragliders, powered hang gliders, and ground effect vehicles. Most fixed-wing aircraft are flown by a pilot, but some can be controlled remotely or operate completely on their own without a person guiding them.

History

Main articles: Aviation history and Early flying machines

Kites were used a long time ago in China, around 2,800 years ago. People made kites from materials they had there. Much later, around the year 549 AD, a paper kite helped carry a message for a rescue. Kites were also used for measuring distances, sending signals, and many other useful things.

Children flying a kite in 1828 Bavaria, by Johann Michael Voltz

People in Europe learned about kites from travelers like Marco Polo. By the 1700s and 1800s, scientists started using kites to learn more about the wind and the sky.

One of the first attempts to make a flying machine was by a man named Archytas in ancient Greece. He made something that looked like a bird, but it wasn’t very successful. Many other people tried to make gliders, too.

In 1799, a man named Sir George Cayley described what a modern airplane should look like. He built small flying models and even a glider that could carry a person. Other inventors like John J. Montgomery and Otto Lilienthal also made gliders around this time.

Le Bris and his glider, Albatros II, photographed by Nadar, 1868

The Wright brothers are famous for making the first successful powered flight in 1903 with their airplane called Flyer I. Their airplane could fly for a long time and be controlled well.

During World War I, airplanes were used to help soldiers see the enemy and even fight. After the war, flying became more popular, and people started making longer and longer flights.

In World War II, airplanes were very important in battles. Some new kinds of airplanes, like jet planes, were invented during this time.

After the war, airplanes got even faster. In 1947, an airplane flew faster than the speed of sound for the first time. New types of airplanes, like the Boeing 707, made it easier for many people to fly long distances.

Types

Airplane/aeroplane

Main article: Airplane

An airplane (called an aeroplane in British English and shortened to plane) is a powered fixed-wing aircraft pushed forward by thrust from a jet engine or propeller. Planes come in many sizes, shapes, and wing designs. They are used for things like fun activities, moving goods and people, military work, and research.

Seaplane

Main article: Seaplane

A seaplane (also called a hydroplane) can take off from and land on water. Some seaplanes can also land on dry ground and are called amphibian aircraft. Seaplanes are split into two types: float planes and flying boats.

A float plane is like a regular airplane but has wheels replaced with floats, letting it stay afloat on water.
A flying boat is a seaplane with a special watertight bottom part called a hull. It lands on water and stays up by itself, without needing extra floats, though small floats under the wings or on the body might be used for balance. Big seaplanes are usually flying boats.

Powered gliders

Main article: Powered glider

Some gliders have small engines. These include:

Motor glider – a regular glider or sailplane with a small engine that can be used while flying to go faster.
Powered hang glider – a hang glider with an engine added.
Powered parachute – a type of parachute with a frame, seat, wheels, and engine hanging below.
Powered paraglider or paramotor – a paraglider with an engine hanging behind the pilot.

Ground effect vehicle

Main article: Ground effect vehicle

A ground effect vehicle (GEV) flies close to the ground, using the ground effect – the way wings and the surface work together. Some GEVs can fly higher when needed and are called powered fixed-wing aircraft.

Glider

Main article: Glider (aircraft)

A glider is an aircraft that flies without an engine. A sailplane is a fixed-wing glider made to stay up in the air by using rising air currents and can fly for a long time.

Gliders are mostly used for fun but can also be used for things like studying how air moves, and bringing back spacecraft. Motor gliders have a small engine to help with taking off or to make the flight longer.

Like airplanes, gliders come in many shapes with different wings, how well they can move through the air, where the pilot sits, and what controls they use.

Big gliders are often lifted into the air by a plane pulling them or by a winch. Rocket-powered aircraft and spaceplanes have landed like gliders.

Gliders and sailplanes used for the sport of gliding can move through the air very well. Some can glide for thousands of kilometers at speeds over 200 km/h.

A simple example of a glider is a paper airplane. Folding a piece of paper into a shape can make it glide a short distance because it is light compared to its size.

Gliders and sailplanes share many features with powered airplanes. For example, the Horten H.IV was a glider with no tail, and the delta-winged Space Shuttle orbiter glided when it came back to Earth. Many gliders use similar controls and instruments as airplanes.

Types

The main use of modern gliders is for sports and fun.

Sailplane

Main article: Glider (sailplane)

Gliders were created in the 1920s for fun. As pilots learned to use rising air, sailplane gliders were made to glide to the next spot of rising air, letting them fly farther. This started the popular sport of gliding.

Early gliders were made mostly of wood and metal, but later they used materials like glass, carbon, or aramid fibers. To reduce drag, these gliders have a smooth body and long, narrow wings. They come as single-seat or two-seat gliders.

At first, training was done with short "hops" in primary gliders. Since after World War II, training is done in two-seat gliders with dual controls. Some gliders, called motor gliders, are made for gliding but can use piston, rotary, jet or electric engines. Gliders are grouped by the FAI for competitions based on wingspan and flaps.

A class of very light sailplanes, including some called microlift gliders and airchairs, has been made by the FAI based on weight. They are light enough to be easy to move and can be flown without a license in some countries. Ultralight gliders perform like hang gliders but are safer because the pilot sits in a seat with a protective frame. They usually land on one or two wheels, which is different from hang gliders. Most are made by individual designers and hobbyists.

Military gliders

Military gliders were used to carry soldiers and equipment to battle areas. The gliders were pulled into the air and most of the way to their target by transport planes, like the C-47 Dakota. The good thing about gliders compared to paratroopers was that heavy equipment could be landed and soldiers could get together quickly instead of being scattered when they jumped from planes. The gliders were made from cheap materials like wood. By the Korean War, transport planes got bigger and more efficient so even small tanks could be dropped by parachute, making gliders unnecessary.

Research gliders

Even after powered airplanes were made, gliders were still used for studying aviation. The NASA Paresev Rogallo flexible wing was made to test new ways to bring spacecraft back. Although this idea was stopped, it inspired people to use the flexible-wing shape for hang gliders.

Studies of many types of fixed-wing aircraft, like flying wings and lifting bodies, started with unpowered models.

Hang glider

A hang glider is a glider where the pilot sits in a harness attached to the frame, and controls it by moving their body weight against the frame. Hang gliders are usually made of an aluminum alloy or composite-framed fabric wing. Pilots can stay up for hours, go up thousands of meters in rising air, do tricks, and glide long distances.

Paraglider

A paraglider is a light, free-flying glider that you can launch by foot. The pilot sits in a harness under a hollow fabric wing shaped by the lines. Air entering vents at the front and the way air moves over the wing keeps the glider moving. Paragliding is mostly done for fun.

Unmanned gliders

A paper plane is a toy airplane (usually a glider) made from paper or cardboard.

Model glider aircraft are small models made from light materials like polystyrene and balsa wood. They range from simple gliders to very detailed scale models.

Glide bombs are bombs with wings that let them glide instead of just falling, allowing planes to attack from farther away.

Kite

Main article: Kite

Applications

Military

Kites have been used for sending signals, carrying munitions, and for observation.

Science and meteorology

Kites have been used for science, like when Benjamin Franklin used one to show that lightning is electricity. Kites were important in developing airplanes and were used to carry instruments high to study the weather for weather forecasting.

Radio aerials and light beacons

Kites can carry radio antennas. This was used for the first transatlantic radio transmission by Marconi. Captive balloons might be easier for some experiments because kite antennas need wind, which isn't always strong enough with heavy equipment and a wire on the ground.

A 1943 USAAF Waco CG-4A

Kites can also carry lights such as glow sticks or battery-powered lights.

Kite traction

Kites can pull people and vehicles along the ground. Strong foil-type kites such as power kites can also sail upwind, like traditional sailboats, if the forces on the ground or water are turned aside as with keels, centerboards, wheels, and ice blades on sailboats. In the last twenty years, kite sailing sports have become popular, such as kite buggying, kite landboarding, kite boating and kite surfing. Snow kiting is also popular.

Kite sailing offers some advantages over traditional sailing:

Wind is stronger higher up.
Kites can be moved quickly, increasing the force.
No mechanical parts are needed to handle bending forces; vehicles or hulls can be light or not needed.

Power generation

See also: Laddermill and High altitude wind power

Research and development projects are looking at using kites to harness high-altitude wind for making electricity.

Cultural uses

Kite festivals are a popular form of entertainment around the world. They include local events, traditional festivals and big international festivals.

Designs

Types

Main article: Kite types

Characteristics

The main parts of a fixed-wing aircraft include:

Air frame: The strong body of the plane, made from materials like wood, metal, or modern composites. It holds the wings, body, and tail.
Wings: Flat parts on the sides that help the plane fly by pushing air down. They can be flexible or rigid and often hold fuel.
Fuselage: The long, thin middle part where people and things are carried. It can be simple or very fancy with special designs.
Vertical and horizontal stabilizers: Parts at the back that help the plane stay steady and change direction.
Landing gear: Wheels or skids that let the plane touch the ground or water safely.

Planes can have different wing setups, like one wing, two wings stacked, or special triangle-shaped wings. Some planes even look like big wings with no separate body!

Pilots control the plane using steering wheels, pedals, and other tools to move up, down, left, and right. Inside the cockpit, there are special tools to show speed, height, direction, and more, helping pilots fly safely.