<div style="font-family: Noteworthy; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 24px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(130, 98, 83, 0.0976563); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(191, 107, 82, 0.496094); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; "><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: medium; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); ">As an airline pilot and technical pilot I couldn't disagree more.</span><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: medium; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); ">If you want to fly at the slowest possible airspeed, you need full flaps.</div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: medium; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); ">Indeed the lift/drag ratio with full flaps compared to take off flaps is lower but full flaps reduce the stall speed quite significant compared to take off flaps.</div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: medium; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); "></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: medium; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); ">So why don't airliners take off with full flaps?</div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: medium; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); ">Airliners are certified to meet specific climb gradients in case of an engine failure during take off, and since the flap configuration may not be changed during take off it would simply not be possible to fulfill the required gradients with a higher flap setting than take off.</div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: medium; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); ">Usually airliners have two flap setting for take off. If the runway is short or there is a close-in obstacle the higher setting is used, since you want to get off the runway a early as possible.</div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: medium; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); "></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: medium; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); ">The above does not apply with models having more than 45 degree flaps.</div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: medium; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); ">Above 45 degree flaps, the flaps act more like drag devices than lift devices.</div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: medium; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); "></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: medium; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); "></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: medium; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); ">Martin</div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: medium; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); "></div></div>