Physics of Flying

First published in German, August. 14. 2002
by Jan Peter Apel

The Physics of Flying

The explanation of the character of flying

________________________________________________________

In the beginning there was nothing
________________________________________________________

Then the big bang catapulted from nothing masses apart.
________________________________________________________

These masses intend to merge again and accelerate themselves by gravity closer and closer together.
_______________________________________________________

In order to not being pulled completely by gravity to the earth, a body has to accelerate itself constantly other matter in the opposite direction.
________________________________________________________

Satellites obtains permanent acceleration due to the geometry of the orbit and the centrifugal force from her own masses.
________________________________________________________

Only by means of a second mass a body can accelerate itself
________________________________________________________

A rocket or a human being with „backpacked jets“ accelerate hisself against the acceleration of the earth by pushing off picked up(fuel-)mass and its force of backstroke.
________________________________________________________

Even an aircraft heavier than air can keep itself above only via backstroke! Anything else is not possible in this universe.
________________________________________________________

The mass to generate backstroke has not to be carried by the object that is flying in the air: it can take the air itself.
Using a plane (wing) it is possible to take the air and accelerate it downwards. Thereby backstroke is generated by the downwash.
________________________________________________________

A board accelerates air downwards by pushing air directly down by a downward stroke and indirectly draws air from above with.

Since the plate not side walls rests, such as a piston surface on the cylinder wall, caused large-scale avoidance of the movements of air moving downwards around a board.

Despite these surrounding wash round results as with a piston over pressure under and additionally low pressure on the board.

This is comparable to the situation of a piston in a cylinder with the result of accelerations of the affected masses of air including their surrounding wash ups.
The over pressure under and the low pressure above the board generate the air-force caused by accelerate of air mass with accordance salaried plates.

This is the generell physically basic principle for generating of air-forces by Aero - Kinetics,
namely to move air out of its state before.

Aerokinetics is contrary to Aerodynamics, in where the air changes only its internal states without any energy input or - dissipation.

After generation of air force the required energy remains in the air, namely in moving downward vortices.
The movements of air caused by a plate form a closed vortex ring around the plate.

The vortices on insect wings are the RESULT from the production of air force by flapping wings and not the cause of the air force!

If a board is simultaneously moving in a direction down and forward, the vortex at the front of the board goes with.
But the vortex at the back of the board rests at the spot in the air where it is born.
Basicly: A vortex is not part of the edge of a board. Vorticies are based only by touching differently moving air masses.

During forward/downward movement a board, representing a wing, accelerate allways new air down.
This airflow is named down wash.
The downward motion of the wing caused this down wash ranges from the starting place up to the current location.

Around the trajectory with the width of the span of an aircraft arises vortices at the borderline between the down wash and the adjacent static air.
The center of rotation of the front vortex is located within the wing profiles.
This vortex is real and caused the strange lifting of air in front of a plane wing.

Is the moving very fast forwards in relationship to the movement downwards,
the ratio of a wing is the same like that of a gliding sailplane.
Then the course is almost horizontal.
The decisiv: the vortex that is locally generated for a short moment at the leading edge of the wing,
identified as the “profile” fortex, is including the complete wing in its full depth.

Between the „vortex of launch“ and the vortex at the leading edge of the wing the air on the flying course
by accelerated downwards in a range under and above the plane in approximate the span of the airplane.

This is flying!

Namely: lift force arise by vertical downward acceleration of the previously stationary air by the wings.
Air is moved above and below up to a distance in the magnitude of the span of the wings

The vortex, which flows around the airfoil of a wing, is cause for a low drag of the wings of planes. The air, sucked from above, will be elegantly moved backwards for unimpeded down flow behind the trailing edge of the wing.
In supersonic flight, there is no longer this vortex. Therefore, the resistance of flying there is also greater.
The down wash of an airplane creates displacement for the surrounding air. This creates all the stationary vortices along the flight path, the two counter-rotating vortices, the eddy wake

The following picture shows the actual vortex and downward movements of two air particles.

When powered flight the obliquely upward wing surface generates the down wash. This down wash will therefore going a little bit with the plane in its direction.
When wings are gliding, they must be slightly inclined forwardly, the down wash goes to the back.

An airplane produce a ring vortices, formed around the entire edge of the downwardly flowing air on its flight path. It is composed of its four sections: the starting vortex, the profile vortex and the two counter-rotating vortices in the dreaded trailing vortex!

_________________________________________________________

Flying is like swimming:

Air (water) with wings (hands, feets) struck downwards (kicked)
or
Air (water) with a slanted plane of a wing with an angel of attack (hands) (palms of hands) is accelerated downwards by horizontal movements with adequate velocity.