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Can A Plane Take Off On A Treadmill?

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Old Jan 25, 2008 | 08:49 PM
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OIC
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Old Jan 25, 2008 | 09:15 PM
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To answer this question since it's been answered 100 times on 400 forums...

1)Yes the plane with take off. The plane does not take off because of wind. It takes off because of thrust.
Force exerted by treadmill => pure Rotational Kinematic Energy of the wheel
Force exerted by engine => pure Kinematic Energy of the plane.

2)This will be on this season's mythbusters, so watch it there.
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Old Jan 25, 2008 | 09:42 PM
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Wrong NFR

http://youtube.com/watch?v=1mm8raOaOIU

Lift dynamics..

Drag dynamics..

Air creates the lift.
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Old Jan 25, 2008 | 09:55 PM
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Evilmonkey,
you are wrong.
we all know that forward motion is necesary for the lift and plane to fly. The essential question is whether there is forward motion.

the short answer is YES, there is forward motion of the plane, hence it will fly.
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Old Jan 25, 2008 | 10:00 PM
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Originally Posted by antonio88x,Jan 25 2008, 03:47 PM
no, the ENGINE moves the plane forward. The thrust from the engine moves the plane forward. When the plane is moved forward, the air moving over the airfoil design of the wing creates a vaccum, causing lift. This is what keeps the airplane in the air. The lift of the wings counteract the force of gravity trying to pull the plane out of the sky. Thats why when engines fail, planes fall out of the sky, there isn't enough air moving over the wings to create enough lift.

This plane that is on the treadmill is going zero mph. There is no air going over the wings, creating no lift. Its the exact same thing as putting an r/c car on a treadmill, it is moving at zero mph.

The example of the runner on the treadmill is an excellent one, the is no fresh air hitting the runner's face. So, there wouldn't be any air moving over the plane's wings.

The point I'm trying to make is that in order for the plane to take off, there needs to be enough airflow pasing over the airfoil to lift the weight of the plane. And there is no airflow on the treadmill.
the plane is not going 0mph relative to earth.
it is going forward because, unlike a car, a plane propels forward by pushing air (not ground/treadmill). A car will futilely pushes against the treadmill hence will NOT move forward. The plane's wheels are just there to support the plane until lift off is achieved when sufficient velocity is reached. The wheel of a car is attached to the engine but remember teh wheels of the plane is NOT attached to the engine but freely spinning.
runner/car is not equal to plane in this example.
compare a roller blader pushing against the hand hold of the moving sidewalks in airport terminals. they can move against the direction of the moving sidewalk.
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Old Jan 26, 2008 | 12:30 AM
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it is going forward because, unlike a car, a plane propels forward by pushing air (not ground/treadmill).
What's making the plane "propel forward?"

IF we assume the engine is providing enough thrust for the plane to reach the take-off velocity needed for the wings to provide enough lift, then the plane will fly. If not, no. So the anser is, "it depends."
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Old Jan 26, 2008 | 12:53 AM
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WOW, just WOW.

I don't know how so many of you have made it far enough in life to land a job decent enough to afford an S2K without at some point taking a physics class.

The wheels on the plane and the treadmill is irrelevant, that's not how planes work. The treadmill can be moving 1000mph in the opposite direction of the plane and the plane will still move forward relative to the earth and take off.

How do planes take off on water? Answer that question and now tell me why/how the treadmill matters.
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Old Jan 26, 2008 | 04:39 AM
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let's break this down soeveryone can understand. Try this experiment and then let me know what you think.

1. Have a friend put on a pair of rollerblades and get on a tread mill. (The rollerblade wheels represent the wheels on a plane, your buddy represents the plane)

2. set the treadmill speed for 10mph, get behind your buddy and hold him steady. ( you represent thrust of a plane, as you are not affected by the treadmill at all. It will take some force to keep him in the same position because of friction, but not much)

3. now give him a slight push, as you see with very little effort he moves foward. (you representing thrust can overcome the slight bit of friction from the wheels and move him foward. The wheels of the rollerblades and the treadmill are both moving at the same speed, yet your friend moves foward)

thread over


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Old Jan 26, 2008 | 06:25 AM
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^^^ Best analogy right there.

So, in a nutshell, it's a trick question. Yes, it will take off. The treadmill is irrelevant.

Now, if the question was "can a car with wings take off from a treadmill", then the answer would be "no".

Get it?
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Old Jan 26, 2008 | 02:25 PM
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Originally Posted by NFRs2000NYC,Jan 26 2008, 02:15 AM
To answer this question since it's been answered 100 times on 400 forums...

1)Yes the plane with take off. The plane does not take off because of wind. It takes off because of thrust.
Force exerted by treadmill => pure Rotational Kinematic Energy of the wheel
Force exerted by engine => pure Kinematic Energy of the plane.

2)This will be on this season's mythbusters, so watch it there.
Well, if you take the wings of a plane, it doesn't matter how powerful the engine is, its just a fast bus and its not leaving the ground!
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