Rate of air passing over the wings
The lift generated by speed of the wing supports an aircraft in the air.
Lift and thrust is what enables an airplane to maintain flight. Lift is generated by the wings, and thrust is generated by the engine or propeller. Combined they enable the aircraft to fly. Air currents and up-drafts, on an aircraft that does not have an engine (like a glider), also help generate lift and thrust to keep such an aircraft in the air. However, gliders get into the air by being towed by an airplane, or by a sort of sling-shot.
The four forces that act on an airplane in Flight are Lift (upward generated by the wings), weight (Down generated by gravity, Thrust (forward generated by the engines), and drag (essentially backward generated by the resistance of the aircraft to the atmosphere).
The four forces that act on an airplane in Flight are Lift (upward generated by the wings), weight (Down generated by gravity, Thrust (forward generated by the engines), and drag (essentially backward generated by the resistance of the aircraft to the atmosphere).
In order to lift off the ground, the lift force (the upward force generated by the wings) has to be at least as great as the weight of the aircraft. Lift and weight are opposing forces and are equal in straight and level flight.
All aircraft are affected by gravity; so is everything else. The aircraft are able to fly because the force of the lift generated by the airflow over the wings is balanced by the weight of the airplane.
Interesting question. Lift is what actually allows an aircraft to leave the ground, but lift in a normal type aircraft (not a helicopter) is generated by forward movement through the air and that is produced by thrust. So, while lift is what's necessary to overcome gravity (weight), it's thrust that is needed to generate lift...so both forces are in play at takeoff.
The weight of an aircraft counteracts the lift produced by an aircraft. The heavier an aircraft weighs the greater the lift needed to get off the ground.
In aircraft aerodynamics, the lift-to-drag ratio, or L/D ratio, is the amount of lift generated by an aerofoil, divided by the drag it creates by moving through the air. A higher or more favourable L/D ratio is typically one of the major goals in aircraft design; since a particular aircraft's required lift is set by its weight, delivering that lift with lower drag leads directly to better fuel economy, climb performance, and glide ratio.
The power generated by modern engines is the reason. Sufficient lift is gained by one wing with modern engines.
The rotor blades on a helicopter work the same way as wings on a fixed wing aircraft. The air passing faster over the top of the airfoil generates lift. Helicopter rotors spin so that the lift is generated without having to have forward airspeed like a fixed wing aircraft.
The only 'wingless aircraft' are helicopters. These produce lift lift from the rotor blades, which are in fact, long narrow wings.