November 2, 1947 saw the first (and only) flight of what famed aircraft, the largest fixed with aircraft ever to fly?
Large aircraft giant airships of the 1930s remain, as of 2016, the largest aircraft ever constructed, while the Hughes H-4 "Spruce Goose" of 1947 had the largest wingspan of any fixed-wing type. The Hybrid Air Vehicles Airlander 10 hybrid airship is the largest aircraft flying today. The lifting capacity of an aircraft depends on the wing size and its "loading", the weight per unit area that the wing can support. Loading is more or less constant for a given level of technology. Thus, as aircraft size increases the lifting capacity increases with the surface area. For a given aerodynamic form, the area
Aircraft flight mechanics Aircraft flight mechanics Flight mechanics are relevant to fixed wing (gliders, aeroplanes) and rotary wing (helicopters) aircraft. An aeroplane ("airplane" in US usage), is defined in ICAO Document 9110 as, "a power-driven heavier than air aircraft, deriving its lift chiefly from aerodynamic reactions on surface which remain fixed under given conditions of flight". A heavier-than-air craft (aircraft) can only fly if a series of aerodynamic forces come to bear. In regard to fixed wing aircraft, the fuselage of the craft holds up the wings before takeoff. At the instant of takeoff, the reverse happens and the wings support the plane