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Engineering · Aviation

Flight School

Balance the four forces of flight, steer with roll, pitch and yaw, design a paper plane that goes the distance, look inside a jet engine and soar on a thermal.

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The course

7 worlds · 28 lessons

World 1 · The Four Forces of Flight

FREELift, weight, thrust and drag, and the balance between them
  1. 01Four forces in balanceLift, weight, thrust and drag · 11 min
  2. 02How a wing liftsThe lift equation · 13 min
  3. 03Thrust fights dragWhy planes need engines · 12 min
  4. 04Slow down too muchStall · 13 min
  5. 05Where it balancesWeight and the centre of gravity · 12 min

World 2 · Roll, Pitch and Yaw

PROHow a pilot turns surfaces into turning moments
  1. 01Three axesHow an aircraft turns in space · 10 minPRO
  2. 02Moving surfacesAileron, elevator and rudder · 12 minPRO
  3. 03Banking to turnLoad factor and turn radius · 14 minPRO
  4. 04Flying hands-offStability · 12 minPRO

World 3 · Paper Plane Designer

PROBalance, trim and test a plane you can fold in a minute
  1. 01Folds and shapesDart or glider? · 12 minPRO
  2. 02The balance pointCentre of gravity · 12 minPRO
  3. 03Tweaks that trim the flightElevons and dihedral · 12 minPRO
  4. 04Design, test, improveThe engineering cycle · 13 minPRO

World 4 · How a Jet Engine Works

PROThrust from momentum, the Brayton cycle, bypass and altitude
  1. 01Thrust from throwing air backNewton again · 12 minPRO
  2. 02Squeeze, burn, expandThe four stages · 14 minPRO
  3. 03Fan firstTurbofans and bypass · 13 minPRO
  4. 04Why airliners cruise highAltitude, Mach and fuel · 14 minPRO

World 5 · How Helicopters Fly

PROA spinning wing, two sticks and a lot of power
  1. 01A spinning wingRotor lift · 12 minPRO
  2. 02Two sticksCollective and cyclic · 13 minPRO
  3. 03Fighting the spinTorque and the tail rotor · 12 minPRO
  4. 04When the engine failsAutorotation and limits · 13 minPRO

World 6 · Gliders and Thermals

PROStaying up with no engine at all
  1. 01Falling forwardGlide ratio · 12 minPRO
  2. 02Best speed to glideThe polar curve · 14 minPRO
  3. 03Columns of rising airThermals · 14 minPRO
  4. 04Ridges and wavesOther free lift · 12 minPRO

World 7 · Birds vs Planes

PROWhat nature and engineering share, and where they differ
  1. 01Flapping flightLift and thrust from one wing · 12 minPRO
  2. 02Why big things fly fastWing loading and size · 14 minPRO
  3. 03Borrowing from birdsSoaring, winglets and biomimicry · 13 minPRO
Flight School — interactive 3D lab · Novareka