Linked Questions
45 questions linked to/from Is a winglet better than an equal span extension?
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Why don't more airplanes incorporate spiroid winglets? [duplicate]
In typical airplanes, lift induced drag can account for the majority of the overall drag. Why don't more aircraft employ methods to reduce this and specifically why not spiroid winglets? From every ...
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Do winglets really improve efficiency and reduce drag? [duplicate]
Below are some pictures of various fixed wing aircraft with winglets. It is widely accepted that these winglets will improve an airplane's performance by reducing drag and therefore improving fuel ...
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Why is it rare for small aircraft to have winglets?
I've noticed that winglets are very rare on small aircraft. I wonder why this is the case. Wouldn't they have the same advantages, especially because they travel at low speed? Or is it just a wrong ...
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Would an 8% reduction in drag outweigh the weight addition from this custom CFD-tested winglet?
I'm writing an essay at school about why there is so much variation in winglet design. I am analysing all the primary types of winglets used today in the aviation industry. I'm constructing them in ...
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Do box-wings suffer from induced drag the same way as normal wings?
Most wings suffer from induced drag due to a pressure difference above and below the wing causing air to sneak around the tip, forming a vortex. There are various methods to minimize these effects, ...
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How does an aircraft form wake turbulence?
This question discusses how wake turbulence can affect planes flying in formation. It got me wondering, how do aircraft (the wings in particular) form wake turbulence to begin with? It can't be as ...
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Why do propeller blades not have winglets?
On the first look this question might sound ridiculous and maybe it is.
But as propeller blades act by the same physical laws as wings, and winglets reduce the induced drag by quite a bit, then why ...
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How high does the ground effect last?
Up to which height is the ground effect still significant enough to be taken into account? Would this height be sufficient to actually fly above the ground, overcoming at least trivial obstacles like ...
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Would connecting propeller blades with a continuous ring reduce induced drag?
Turbine engines are covered, which of course is to contain the process (just like a super/turbocharged engine is as soon as the air enters the intake). But it got me thinking, doesn't this also reduce ...
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Why has the 777x been designed with folding wingtips?
I recently visited the Boeing factory outside Seattle, WA and noted in the distance a new 777x being built with, what looked like very large winglets.
However, on closer inspection they're not - the ...
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Why don't horizontal stabilizers have winglets?
Winglets are used to reduce induced drag on the main wings of an aircraft as per explanations on wikipedia. Since they are very effective I was wondering why they are not installed also on horizontal ...
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Why is lift larger than thrust? [duplicate]
It's been a while since I tried to read a little about flight mechanics and aerodynamics, but I remember one question I had back then:
Is the thrust of a common passenger aircraft (A320, B737) ...
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Why is the use of tail-down force so common?
Why is the use of tail-down force so prevalent in aircraft design? Why not use canards to avoid induced drag?
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Why does the Antonov AN-225 not have any winglets?
Winglets provide a lift boost that would be useful to a plane of this size. But the An-255 does not have any winglets.
Why is it so?
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Is wingtip design mature?
There are many wingtip design, all made to reduce vortex related drag, and neither boeing nor airbus seems to prefer one over another. They move from one design to another at each new aircraft, always ...
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