Ask the Chatbot Games & Quizzes ProCon History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture Money Videos
airfoil
Table of Contents
Introduction References & Edit History Quick Facts & Related Topics
Images & Videos
airfoil
Know about the various helicopter rotor blade design using advanced aerodynamic technology
Know how a helicopter stays up in the air and how its rotor generates lift
Read Next
Businessman using tablet phone on airplane
Why Do You Have to Turn Off Electronic Devices on an Airplane?
Lightning over the outskirts of Oradea, Rom., during the thunderstorm of August 17, 2005.
16 Questions About Earth’s Atmsophere and Weather Answered
Still from the film Deliverance, 1919. The story of Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan. View shows Keller in the cockpit/front seat of an airplane.
How Did Helen Keller Fly a Plane?
The Apple II
10 Inventions That Changed Your World
Airplane in the sky with a trace of steam contrail.
What Is Known (and Not Known) About Contrails
Discover
Title: Senate Square, St. Petersburg, December 14, 1825: repression of the troop mutiny - watercolor by Carl Ivanovitch Kollman, 1825 depicts Decembrist uprising clashing with cavalry, with spectators watching. (new style December 26, 1825) Europe. Saint
8 of the Largest Empires in History
New York NY/ USA- November 23, 2018 Hordes of shoppers throng the Macy's Herald Square flagship store in New York looking for bargains on the day after Thanksgiving, Black Friday.
Why Is It Called Black Friday?
Iraqi Army Soldiers from the 9th Mechanized Division learning to operate and maintain M1A1 Abrams Main Battle Tanks at Besmaya Combat Training Center, Baghdad, Iraq, 2011. Military training. Iraq war. U.S. Army
8 Deadliest Wars of the 21st Century
Diverse elementary school children wearing school uniforms running outside of school. Boys girls
Pro and Con: School Uniforms
Super Typhoon Noru over the western tropical Pacific Ocean as observed by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA Aqua satellite July 31 2017
What Is the Difference Between a Typhoon and a Super Typhoon?
A human Inuit skull in a stone chambered cairn in Ilulissat in Greenland. These ancient graves are pre christian and are at least 2000
14 Tough Questions Answered
Thanksgiving Celebration Traditional Dinner Setting Food Concept
Why Is Thanksgiving in the U.S. Celebrated on a Thursday?
airfoil
airfoil An airfoil section displayed at the tip of this Denney Kitfox aircraft (G-FOXC), built in 1991.

airfoil

aircraft part
verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style
Share
Share to social media
URL
https://www.britannica.com/technology/airfoil
Feedback
Corrections? Updates? Omissions? Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login).
Thank you for your feedback

Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.

External Websites
Also known as: aerofoil
Written and fact-checked by
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Last Updated: • Article History
Also spelled:
Aerofoil

airfoil, shaped surface, such as an airplane wing, tail, or propeller blade, that produces lift and drag when moved through the air. An airfoil produces a lifting force that acts at right angles to the airstream and a dragging force that acts in the same direction as the airstream.

High-speed aircraft usually employ low-drag, low-lift airfoils that are thin and streamlined. Slow aircraft that carry heavy loads use thicker airfoils with high drag and high lift.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Amy Tikkanen.