Although the plane is seen as an indispensable way of fast and comfortable travel, perhaps this vehicle is among the phobias of most of us. Especially adverse situations such as the plane having to turn upside down mean that things become even more complicated.
Without further ado, let’s look at how it is possible for planes to fly upside down and which planes can survive such a disaster scenario.
There are four different flight components required for an airplane to fly inverted.
The four forces that act on an aircraft and are necessary for flight are; thrust (power), drag, lift and gravitational force. Three of these four components continue to exert nearly the same physical force even if the aircraft turns upside down.
This is because regardless of whether an aircraft continues its normal flight or is inverted, the way it flies remains essentially the same. No matter which direction the plane flies, if it is to stay in the air, it must have lift.
One of the problems with flying upside down is that an airplane is generally designed to produce lift only when flying with its right side up.
This is because the upper parts of the airfoils are designed to be largely rounded and the lower parts to be flat. In this case, the weather forces the aircraft to move faster in the upper areas than in the lower areas.
Due to different air speeds, higher pressures occur under the wings of the aircraft. On the wings, this pressure decreases in the opposite way. In fact, this difference in pressure explains how airplanes can generate lift and fly through the air.
In short, when the aircraft is inverted, this effect is the opposite, and this aircraft naturally produces a downward force instead of lift.
The downward force that increases by inverting the aircraft can only be varied by varying the angle of attack. This is the angle made by the airflow flying over the front parts of the wings.
Even if the airfoil is designed to produce lift only when the right side is up, this can only occur during cruise and climb. In the opposite case, it would not be possible to land the plane.
Under normal circumstances, when the pilot heads towards the airport to land, he tilts the nose of the plane forward and changes the angle of attack.
This movement of the pilot reduces the effect of the lift force and the altitude of the plane decreases. The same logic applies when the plane is inverted. Regardless of the shape of the wing profile, the pilot can change the angle of attack and activate the lift force by creating a high pressure area under the wings.
To do this while the aircraft is in an inverted position, the pilot must lift the nose of the aircraft. However, when the plane turns upside down, everything turns upside down, and this situation is similar to lowering the nose of the plane during flight.
Aircraft designed for inverted flight, such as acrobatic and stunt aircraft, have much simpler wing profiles.
The wings on these aircraft are rounded from both the bottom and the top, and since the air moves at the same speed at the bottom and top, the lift force creates a symmetrical wing profile.
The purpose of symmetrical wing profiles is that planes can fly the same way as if they were right side up, even if their angles were reversed. The way pilots create lift in such aircraft depends entirely on the angle of attack.
In summary, “How can planes fly upside down?” The answer to the question lies in their ability to produce buoyancy. This is achieved by changing the angle of attack and different wing profiles.
So can all planes fly upside down?
Demonstration planes and aerobatic planes are specifically designed to fly right side up or upside down. Therefore, an inverted flight does not pose a problem for them. However, the pilot must accurately adjust the angle of attack to activate lift when inverted, which is challenging due to the design of other aircraft types, including passenger aircraft.
However, if the pilot of a commercial or passenger aircraft has the expertise to turn the plane upside down, it is theoretically possible to fly upside down, even if only for a short time. However, this is a dangerous situation that requires experience, and not every aircraft is suitable for this.
In a section from the movie Flight, it is possible to see the scenario in which a passenger plane is forced to fly upside down, albeit for a short time:
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