Inventors
The Parts of an Airplane
Parts of a
Plane
The body of the plane is called the
fuselage.
It is generally a long tube shape. The wheels of a plane are called the
landing gear. There are two main wheels on either side of the plane
fuselage. Then there is one more wheel near the front of the plane. The
brakes for the wheels are like the brakes for cars. They are operated by
pedals, one for each wheel. Most landing gear can be folded into the fuselage
during the flight and opened for landing.
All planes have wings.
The wings are shaped with smooth surfaces. There is a curve to the wings
which helps push the air over the top more quickly than it goes under the
wing. As the wing moves, the air flowing over the top has farther to go
and it moves faster than the air underneath the wing. So the air pressure
above the wing is less than below it. This produces the upward lift. The
shape of the wings determines how fast and high the plane can fly. Wings
are called airfoils.
 
 
 
The hinged control surfaces are used
to steer and control the airplane. The flaps and ailerons are connected
to the backside of the wings. The flaps slide back and down to increase
the surface of the wing area. They also tilt down to increase the curve
of the wing. The slats move out from the front of the wings to make
the wing space larger. This helps to increase the lifting force of the
wing at slower speeds like takeoff and landing. The ailerons are
hinged on the wings and move downward to push the air down and make the
wing tilt up. This moves the plane to the side and helps it turn during
flight. After landing, the spoilers are used like air brakes to
reduce any remaining lift and slow down the airplane.
The tail at the
rear of the plane provides stability. The fin is the vertical
part of the tail. The rudder at the back of the plane moves left
and right to control the left or right movement of the plane. The elevators
are found at the rear of the plane. They can be raised or lowered to change
the direction of the plane's nose. The plane will go up or down depending
on the direction of that the elevators are moved.
Return to Airplanes
Main Page
Photos and partial information provided
by NASA
Important disclaimer information about this About site.
| 
