Factors Affecting Lift
Factors Affecting Lift WHAT FACTORS AFFECT LIFT? The size and shape of the wing, the angle at which it meets the oncoming air, the speed at which it moves through the air, even the density of the air, all affect the amount of lift a wing creates. Let’s begin with the shape of a wing intended for subsonic flight. WHY DOES A WING HAVE A ROUNDED FRONT? Air divides smoothly around a wing’s rounded leading edge, and flows neatly off its tapered trailing edge. You might think a sharp leading edge would be better. However, air cannot turn a sharp corner, so tilting a sharp wing even slightly would disrupt the smooth airflow over the wing. This would cause a loss of lift and increase drag. A rounded leading edge divides the airflow smoothly, even as the wing is tilted up or down. WHY DOES A WING HAVE A SHARP REAR EDGE? If the trailing edge were rounded, the higher-pressure air flowing along the lower side would try to follow the rounded surface and spill upward into the lower-pressure air abov...