ORIGINAL: wings
If Cafeenman wants to get that "technical", then he is also incorrect.
Well you're right that I was wrong. I can't believe I said "thrust makes the plane go up." I know better than that. I was thinking in terms of landing where airspeed (thrust) control altitude and elevator controls attitude which isn't true either. Thrust controls airspeed which in turn determines how much lift the wing creates along with the attitude of the wing.
Lift is obtained by moving a lifting surface through the air.
If the "pitch" of the airplane is downward then more thrust makes the plane go down, not up.
This statement makes no sense at all. Thrust pulls the airplane through the air which allows the flying surfaces to work.
So if you are trying to make this into a "Profesional"
explanation, The elevator along with thrust controls the climb of an airplane.
And this is why I say we should teach people correctly to begin with. Once somebody learns the wrong answer they perpetuate it as a truth even though it's wrong.
If we're talking about an aircraft that's flying rather than being pulled solely by the engine then lift is the answer again. It's not the elevator.
Telling people that the elevator makes the plane go up is basically teaching them how to make a bad situation worse when at low airspeed. I hear it all the time at the field... "But I was holding the elevator up and it still smashed into the ground." Umm... yes. We call that a stall.
I guess if you want to really get technical the roll, yaw, and pitch plus thrust determines if the plane is climbing.
I'd like to hear how you explain this please.
If the plane is on its side (Knife Edge Position) thrust plus rudder makes the plane climb.
If the fuselage sides can create enough lift then the plane can fly knife edge. Rudder control the attitude.
The beginner doesn't need to know nuclear fision to grasp this concept.
Lift, gravity, thrust and drag aren't all that difficult to understand and if somebody can't grasp the concept then they probably shouldn't be flying something deadly.
Lift = Go up
Gravity = go down
Thrust = go forward
Drag = hold back
I don't understand nuclear fission, but then it's not part of aerodynamics. When I took basic ground school to fly full scale, the basic forces on an aircraft were covered the first day. I guess they didn't think a rank beginner would have much trouble with it. But they didn't teach me that the elevator makes the plane go up.