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AIRBLUE FLIGHT OPERATIONS OFFICER REFRESHER
TRAINING COURSE
Aviation Introduction
Aviation Introduction
Theory of Flight
Airplane:
An airplane is a vehicle heavier than air, powered by an engine, which travels through the air by the
reaction of air passing over its wings.
Fuselage:
The fuselage is the central body portion of an airplane which accommodates the crew and passengers and or cargo.
Wings:
Wings are the parts of airplane which provide lift and support the entire weight of the airplane and its contents
while in flight.
Flaps:
Flaps are the movable sections of an airplane’s wings closest to the fuselage. They are moved in the same direction
(down) and enable the airplane to fly more slowly.
Ailerons:
Ailerons are the outward movable sections of an airplane’s wings which move in opposite directions (one up, one
down). They are used in making turns.
Rudder:
The rudder is the movable vertical section of the tail which controls lateral movement.
Horizontal Stabilizer:
The horizontal stabilizer is the horizontal surface of the aft part of the fuselage used to balance the airplane.
Elevator:
The elevator is the movable horizontal section of the tail which causes the airplane to move up and down.
The Four Forces:
The four aerodynamic forces acting on an airplane during flight are Weight, Lift, Drag and Thrust.
Weight:
The mass of an object that equals the downward force of gravity pulling it to Earth. Gravity pulls the aircraft to
Earth in a force equal to the weight of the aircraft.
Lift:
The upward force that raises an airfoil when fast-moving air passes over the top of the shape. Lift is the force that
reacts against the weight. It is created when air moves over the airfoil shape of the wing, causing a decrease in air
pressure on top of the wing and a reaction, or push upwards from the greater pressure beneath the wing.
Thrust:
The forward force that propels an object through the air. The forward force countering drag is thrust. Thrust may
be provided by an engine turning a propeller that pushes air backwards as it spins or by a jet engine ejecting hot
gas backward. Both actions result in a forward movement of the aircraft.
Drag:
The backward force acting on an object moving through air caused by air resistance. As an aircraft moves through
the air, the resistance creates drag, slowing the aircraft down. Drag pulls aircraft backwards.
Principles of Flight
Airfoils:
An airfoil, or airfoil section, may be defined as any surface designed to obtain a reaction from the air through
which it moves, that is, to obtain lift. It has been found that the most suitable shape of producing lift is a curved or
cambered shape.
Camber:
The camber of an airfoil is the characteristic curve of its upper or lower surface. The camber determines the
airfoil’s thickness. But more important, the camber determines the amount of lift that a wing produces as air flows
around it.
Bernoulli’s Principle:
Daniel Bernoulli, an eighteenth century Swiss scientist, discovered that as the velocity of a fluid increases, its
pressure decreases.
Bernoulli’s principle can be seen most easily through the use of a venturi tube. A venturi tube is simply a tube,
which is narrower in the middle than it is at ends. When the fluid passing through the tube reaches the narrow
part, it speeds up. According to Bernoulli’s principle. It then should exert less pressure.
How Is Lift Created?
Air flowing over the wing’s upper surface accelerates as it passes through the constricted area just as it does in the
venturi tube. The result is a decrease in pressure on the upper surface of the wing that results in the phenomenon
known as lift.
Control Surfaces:
Airplanes have segments called ailerons inserted in the wings and segments called rudders and elevators inserted
respectively in the vertical fin and horizontal stabilizer. The pilot controls their position from the airplane cockpit.
When the pilot moves them into the airstreams, they cause the plane to react to air pressure. The pilot uses them to
go right or left and also up and down.
Axis of an airplane:
An airplane in flight changes direction by moving around one or more of its three axes of rotation: lateral axis,
vertical axis, and longitudinal axis. These axes are imaginary lines that run perpendicularly to each other through
the exact weight center of the airplane.
YAW:
Rudder rotates the airplane around vertical axis.
ROLL:
Ailerons rotate the airplane around longitudinal axis.
PITCH:
Elevators rotate airplane around lateral axis.
