Airplanes fly mainly because their wings push air downwards. As the air is being pushed down, an upwards force pushes the wing up.
The downwards movement of the air is achieved by two methods, both of which are used on airplanes:
- The leading edge of the wing is higher than the trailing edge, making the wing act as a wedge. The angle between the line from leading edge (front edge of the wing) to the trailing edge (rear edge of the wing) and the airflow coming towards the wing is called the angle of attack.
- The wings profile is such, that it forces the upper airflow go faster than the airflow under the wing. When these airflows meet at the trailing edge, the faster airflow coming from the top tilts the airflow down.
A portion of the lift comes from the faster airflow on top of the wing: as the airflow accelerates, the pressure of the air goes down, causing suction on the top of the wing.
To achieve lift, the airplane needs to go forward, so it either needs an engine to push or pull it, or it needs to glide downwards.
To get more lift, airplanes either raise the angle of attack (raising the leading edge even more higher than the trailing edge), or they go faster. To geget less lift, the do the opposite. Adjusting lift will, of course, make the plane go up or down.
If the angle of attack gets too high, the air can no longer follow the curve of the wings upper surface, and the wing will lose its lift. This is called a stall. A wing stalls if the aircraft is going too slow, therefore all aircraft have a minimum safe speed.
Obviously, there is also a maximum speed for airplanes, usually limited by the airplanes structure which can no longer stand the stresses the fast moving air causes.