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Old 01-13-2003, 11:47 PM
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Default Symmetric airfoil aerodynamics?

I am fairly comfortable with the explanations given thus far, but I'm always interested in getting as many viewpoints on a subject so that I can extract what applies to me and form a complete picture of what is going. I like to get a "feel" for the dynamics involved and any additional information would help this. I also like the aspect of getting a non-technical viewpoint that might give some insight the person has gleamed from actual experience, especially a pilot (model or not).

Please forward me the author, if you it's not too much trouble. I would appreciate reading some of the old-school know-how on a topic so abstract as aerodynamics.

-Q.

Originally posted by JimTrainor
I have an old flying book, I think from the 30's, called "Stick and Rudder"... I can dig up the authors name if requested. The pilot who wrote the book didn't have much patience for highly technical explanations of lift. The book explains it simply: "The plane goes up because the air goes down.". No laws of physics broken by that explanation.

So, the net result of a symmetrical airfoil at a positive angle of attach is to move some air down...