How airplanes fly - the basic principles of flight

The thrust is generated by the airplane's engine (piston or jet). Gravity is a natural force acting upon the airplane and drag comes from friction as the plane moves through air molecules.For an airplane to be controllable, control surfaces are necessary. The four main surfaces are

ailerons, elevators, rudder and flaps.

Located on the trailing edge of the wing, the ailerons control the airplane's roll about its longitudinal axis.

Each aileron moves at the same time but in opposite directions.

The rudder is located on the back edge of the vertical stabilizer, or fin, and is controlled by 2 pedals at the pilot's feet. When the pilot pushes the left pedal, the rudder moves to the left. The air flowing over the vertical stabilizer now is pushed harder against the left side of the rudder, forcing the nose of the airplane to yaw round to the left.

The elevators are located on the rear half of the tailplane, or horizontal stabilizer. Moving the elevator up will cause the airplane to pitch its nose up and climb, while moving them down will cause the airplane to pitch the nose down and dive. Elevators are linked directly to each other and work in unison (unlikeailerons).

Flaps are located on the trailing edge of each wing, between the fuselage and the ailerons, and extend outward and downward from the wing (when put into use)

Angle of attack is the angle that a wing (an airfoil) presents to oncoming air. The greater the angle of attack is, the greater the lift is. The smaller the angle is, the less lift is.