Airplane
An airplane is a powered, fixed-wing aircraft propelled through the air by thrust and supported by aerodynamic lift.
Lift (force): An aerodynamic force perpendicular to an aircraft’s direction of motion through the surrounding air. Airplane wings generate lift that counteracts the aircraft’s weight.
Aerodynamics: The study of how gases move and exert forces on bodies moving through them. Airplane flight depends on aerodynamic forces generated by motion through air.
Commercial aviation: The operation of aircraft to transport passengers or cargo for commercial purposes. Airliners carry passengers and freight on scheduled and charter routes.
Wright Flyer: The Wright brothers’ 1903 powered aircraft, which made the first controlled, sustained flight by a heavier-than-air machine. Its flight at Kitty Hawk demonstrated powered, controlled airplane flight.
Helicopter: A rotorcraft whose powered rotating blades provide lift and allow vertical takeoff and landing. Unlike an airplane, a helicopter can hover and does not rely on fixed wings for lift.
Thrust: A force that propels an object forward by accelerating mass in the opposite direction. Engines produce thrust to overcome drag and move an airplane through the air.
Newton's laws of motion: Three physical laws describing how forces affect the motion of objects. They explain how thrust, lift, drag, and weight change an airplane’s motion.
General aviation: Civil aviation other than scheduled airline services and military aviation. Private flying, flight training, and many small-aircraft activities fall within this broad field.
Wright brothers: American aviation pioneers Orville and Wilbur Wright, who developed the first successful powered airplane. Their experiments in control and propulsion produced the Wright Flyer.
Glider (aircraft): An unpowered fixed-wing aircraft that remains aloft by using rising air and converting altitude into forward motion. A glider shares the airplane’s fixed-wing lift but lacks its own propulsion.