You usually see aircraft in airports, or even at your house if you’re close to their paths! So, what are aircraft?
Their Design
You can notice an aircraft has a pair of wings, right? That is because it generates lift. Also, it has mighty jet engines or propellers to propel it forward and produces lift. Once the lift can overcome gravity, whoosh! The aircraft flies upward and rushes into the clouds.
Also, to cope with the winds blowing faster than a hurricane relative to it, it must be made of light and robust materials, such as titanium. Moreover, you can see windows on the plane. Why they neither blow up nor break apart? In fact, they are not glass, and they have at least 3 layers to keep it safe. Therefore, although sometimes something can damage the aircraft’s window, it is mostly secure.
The design also depends on its capacity and purpose. For example, for a small aircraft, you only need 2 engines. But always do not work on just an engine. If it turns off, there will be nearly no power sources on the plane. Most of the time, large wide-body aircraft also use 2 engines but sometimes they use 3 or 4. The Antonov An-225 uses 6 engines because of its massive payload!
Furthermore, you must also design the cockpit, the cabin, the operating system, and a lot of things. All of which must be approved by teams of experts and being tested before going commercial. They are improving that type of aircraft’s safety so it may take years from the proposal to the actual commercialization.
Types
Aircraft come in many types besides the common commercial type we often heard of. That includes military aircraft which keep an eye on the nation’s safety, and helicopters that send a person to hospital. Also, we can sometimes see some small aircraft that can only take a few people. These are private aircrafts. Moreover, there are aircraft that only take VIPs on board, but that is mostly military.
Furthermore, some aircraft aren’t the way we think. That includes balloons which useb hot air to go upward instead of using wings and it is excellent for sightseeing. Also, there are rockets and spacecraft using rocket engines, especially when it is in an atmosphere.
Safety
Due to their design, the testings and the rigorous training of pilots, air travel is the safest way to travel. However, they do have their disadvantages.
First of all, it may cause fear as it flies into the sky. Many people worry about a crash before looking at the statistics. They also sometimes result in dizziness or even boredom. These can negatively impact your health unless you find it exciting.
Secondly, if you’re unfortunate enough, you may be involved in a plane crash. Luckily, you can survive most of the cases as long as you’re lucky and calm. After all, deaths due to plane crash are far rarer than a heart attack or stroke, or even a car crash. But now, let’s talk about the causes of accidents.
You can know the general causes even without studying the sad history about that. Firstly, no matter how careful you are, you sometimes make errors. This is true for pilots and they could make a wrong decision and cause an accident. Also, human errors can apply to engineers, too. So, maybe there is a manufacturing or even a design error that causes a crash. Others include hijacking or a fire. But after all, they can improve overall safety through investigations and new designs.