A planform or plan view is a vertical orthographic projection of an object on a horizontal plane, like a map. Archaeological plan In an archaeological excavation, a plan is a drawn record of features (and artefacts) in the horizontal plane. ... Example of orthographic drawing from a US Patent (1913), showing two views of the same object. ... A map is a simplified depiction of a space which highlights relations between components (objects, regions) of that space. ...

In aviation, a planform is the shape and layout of an airplane's wing. Of all the myriad planforms used, they can typically be grouped into those used for low-speed flight, found on general aviation aircraft, and those used for high-speed flight, found on many military aircraft and airliners. Aviation refers to flying using aircraft, machines designed by humans for atmospheric flight. ... An Air France Boeing 777, a modern passenger jet. ... This article does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... General aviation (abbr. ... Transonic flow patterns on an airfoil showing the formation of shock waves at different Mach numbers (M) in high-speed flight. ... Military aircraft are airplanes used in warfare. ... An Airbus A340 airliner operated by Air Jamaica An airliner is a large fixed-wing aircraft with the primary function of transporting paying passengers. ...

A Spitfire shows off its elliptical planform

Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1000x1258, 412 KB) Spitfire in planform at Kemble Air Day, Kemble airfield, Gloucestershire, England. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1000x1258, 412 KB) Spitfire in planform at Kemble Air Day, Kemble airfield, Gloucestershire, England. ... The Supermarine Spitfire was an iconic British single-seat fighter used primarily by the RAF and many Allied countries through the Second World War and into the 1950s. ...

Low-speed planforms

The primary concern in low speed flight is the aspect ratio, the comparison of the length of the wing measured out from the fuselage, wingspan, compared to the length from front to back, chord. Wings with higher aspect ratios, that is, wings that are longer and skinnier, have lower drag for any given amount of lift than a wing of the same area that is shorter and fatter. This is due to an effect known as induced drag, caused by airflow around the tip of the wing. As the size of the tip decreases compared to the wing's overall size, the magnitude of the induced drag is reduced. The low aspect ratio wing of a Piper PA-28 Cherokee In aerodynamics, the aspect ratio is an airplanes wings span divided by its standard mean chord (SMC). ... The fuselage can be short, and seemingly unaerodynamic, as in this Christen Eagle 2 The fuselage (from the French fuselé spindle-shaped) is an aircrafts main body section that holds crew and passengers or cargo. ... The distance AB is the wing span of this Aer Lingus Airbus A320. ... Cross section of an airfoil showing chord In reference to aircraft, chord refers to the distance between the front and back of a wing, measured in the direction of the normal airflow. ... An object falling through a gas or liquid experiences a force in direction opposite to its motion. ... The lift force, lifting force or simply lift consists of the sum of all the fluid dynamic forces on a body perpendicular to the direction of the external flow approaching that body. ... In aerodynamics, lift-induced drag, or more simply, induced drag, is a drag force arising from the generation of lift by wings or a lifting body during flight. ...

This is why designers of gliders, who want a high lift to drag ratio, use very long and skinny high aspect ratio wings and winglet. In a general sense all planes should use wings like those on a glider, but practical problems intrude. The primary issue is strength; it is simply harder to build a longer wing than a short one. Gliders or Sailplanes are heavier-than-air aircraft primarily intended for unpowered flight. ... In aerodynamics, the lift-to-drag ratio, or L/D ratio (ell-over-dee, as opposed to ell-dee), is the amount of lift generated by a wing, compared to the drag it creates by moving through the air. ... The McDonnell Douglas MD-11 was the first mainline airliner to feature winglets. ...

There are other ways to reduce induced drag, mostly by changing the shape of the wing to reduce the size of the tip. The elliptical wing found on the Supermarine Spitfire and Republic P-47 is by demonstration, the most efficient, but difficult to build. A practical and simple compromise is to taper the wing towards the tip, a feature that can be found on almost all modern aircraft (including gliders). Elliptical wing is a special aircraft wing planform shape introduced in the 1930s and designed to minimize induced drag. ... The Supermarine Spitfire was an iconic British single-seat fighter used primarily by the RAF and many Allied countries through the Second World War and into the 1950s. ... The Republic P-47 Thunderbolt, or Jug as it was known, was one of the main US Army Air Force (USAAF) fighters of World War II. The P-47 was a big, rugged, overbuilt aircraft that was effective in air combat but proved particularly useful as a fighter-bomber. ...

Aircraft wing planform shapes: a swept wing KC-10 Extender (top) refuels a F-22 Raptor

Download high resolution version (600x711, 114 KB)A KC-10 Extender from Travis Air Force Base, California, refuels an F/A-22 Raptor. ... Download high resolution version (600x711, 114 KB)A KC-10 Extender from Travis Air Force Base, California, refuels an F/A-22 Raptor. ... An Air France Boeing 777, a modern passenger jet. ... The swept wing of an airliner: British Midland Airbus A320-200 A swept-wing is a wing planform used on high-speed aircraft that spend a considerable portion of their flight time in the transonic. ... The KC-10 Extender is an air-to-air tanker aircraft in service with the United States Air Force derived from the civilian DC-10-30 airliner. ... Boom and receptacle: USAF KC-135R Stratotanker, two F-15s (twin fins) and two F-16s, on an aerial refueling training mission Probe and drogue: USAF HC-130P refuels a HH-60 Pave Hawk helicopter Aerial refueling, also called in-flight refueling (IFR) or air-to-air refueling (AAR), is... The F-22 Raptor is a fifth generation stealth fighter aircraft. ...

High-speed planforms

The delta-winged Convair F-106 Delta Dart

At higher speeds nearing the speed of sound, a new form of drag appears: wave drag. Wave drag is considerably more powerful than induced drag, and must be avoided at all costs in order to improve performance. Doing so demands a wing that is as thin as possible, with a slowly changing profile over a wide chord. Of course, this is basically the opposite goal to low speed wings, which presents a problem. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (2400x3180, 8362 KB) Eclipse program QF-106 aircraft in flight, view from tanker Eine QF-106 des Eclipse Programmes während der Fluges, von einem Tankflugzeug aus, Fotografiert Orginal NASA relase to the picture: Eclipse program QF-106 aircraft in flight... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (2400x3180, 8362 KB) Eclipse program QF-106 aircraft in flight, view from tanker Eine QF-106 des Eclipse Programmes während der Fluges, von einem Tankflugzeug aus, Fotografiert Orginal NASA relase to the picture: Eclipse program QF-106 aircraft in flight... The Convair F-106A Delta Dart was the primary all-weather interceptor aircraft for the US Air Force from the 1960s through the late 1970s. ... The speed of sound is a term used to describe the speed of sound waves passing through an elastic medium. ... Wave drag is an aerodynamics term that refers to a sudden and very powerful form of drag that appears on aircraft flying at high-subsonic speeds. ...

Just as on the lower speed designs, making an ideal high speed planform is difficult for practical reasons. In this case a very thin wing makes it difficult to use the internal room to store fuel and landing gear, makes the wing far less stiff torsionally, and causes increased induced drag when flying slower.

Solutions to this problem come in many forms, notably the use of the swept wing and delta wing, both of which avoid the shock wave at the leading edge. Other designs simply made as thin a wing as possible, leading to designs like the F-104 Starfighter. The swept wing of an airliner: British Midland Airbus A320-200 A swept-wing is a wing planform used on high-speed aircraft that spend a considerable portion of their flight time in the transonic. ... The delta-wing is a wing planform in the form of a triangle. ... Introduction The shock wave is one of several different ways in which a gas in a supersonic flow can be compressed. ... The Lockheed F-104 Starfighter was an American high-performance supersonic interceptor aircraft, capable of high speeds and climb rates. ...

Gallery

Planform of a Virgin Atlantic Airbus A340 Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1802x1275, 376 KB) Virgin Atlantic Airbus A340-600 (G-VYOU) lands at London Heathrow Airport, England. ... Virgin Atlantic Airways Ltd. ... The Airbus A340 is a long-range four-engined widebody commercial passenger airplane manufactured by EADS (Airbus S.A.S.). It is similar in design to the two-engined A330. ...

The planform of a Finnair Airbus A320 Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1530x1051, 568 KB) Finnair Airbus A320-200 (OH-LXB) takes off from London Heathrow Airport, England. ... Finnair Airbus A320-200 Finnair MD-11, decorated with Moomin characters Finnair is Finlands largest airline and the national flag carrier. ... The Airbus A320 is a short to medium range commercial passenger aircraft manufactured by Airbus. ...

See also

• Wing
• Aspect ratio (wing)