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aircraft |
Also found in: Wikipedia, Hutchinson | 0.02 sec. |
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aircraft any machine capable of flying by means of buoyancy or aerodynamic forces, such as a glider, helicopter, or aeroplane www.aerospaceweb.org/aircraft/index.shtml aircraft [′er‚kraft] (aerospace engineering) Any structure, machine, or contrivance, especially a vehicle, designed to be supported by the air, either by the dynamic action of the air upon the surfaces of the structure or object or by its own buoyancy. Also known as air vehicle. Aircraft Any vehicle which carries one or more persons and which navigates through the air. The two main classifications of aircraft are lighter-than-air and heavier-than-air. The term lighter-than-air is applied to all aircraft which sustain their weight by displacing an equal weight of air, for example, blimps and dirigibles. Heavier-than-air craft are supported by giving the surrounding air a momentum in the downward direction equal to the weight of the aircraft. See Airplane, Helicopter How to thank TFD for its existence? Tell a friend about us, add a link to this page, add the site to iGoogle, or visit webmaster's page for free fun content. |
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| As Wilbur and Orville Wright brilliantly overcame every obstacle to manned, controlled, heavier-than-air flight, did they ever pause to consider that, a hundred years hence, someone would have to explain their accomplishment to grade-school readers--children jaded by the sight of jet planes streaking the sky? Simon Newcomb, an eminent mathematician and astronomer and founding member of the American Astronomical Society, argued that powered heavier-than-air flight was a practical impossibility. Some aviation historians say that this bird-inspired control mechanism was the pivotal innovation that enabled the Wright brothers to achieve heavier-than-air flight whereas others pursuing that same goal had failed. |
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