Читать книгу Supercool Paper Airplanes Ebook - Andrew Dewar - Страница 9

Test Flying Your Plane

Your plane won’t fly well if the wings are warped or twisted. You can check alignment by holding the model at arm’s length and examining it from the front and back.

Warped wings!

Warped tail!

Just right!

Add camber and fix warps by gently twisting the paper in the wings and tail with your fingers. Tweak a tiny bit at a time until everything is straight.

Paper is affected by moisture in the air and drying sunlight, both of which can warp the paper slightly, so you should re-check the plane when you get to the park, and again every few flights.

The upturn of the wings is called dihedral. It helps keep the plane level, because lift pulls at right angles to each wing, and when the plane banks, the lift created by the level wing increases, and straightens the whole plane until the lift is equal again. Delta-winged planes like The Red Jet (page 15) and The Mirage (page 28) don’t need dihedral, because the triangular wing shape has the same effect, but most of the planes in this kit should have a little.

Test fly the airplane gently at first, onto a carpet or bed or dry lawn. Toss the plane straight forward firmly and watch how it flies. If it stalls (B) or dives (C), adjust it and test fly again, until it glides gently like pattern A.

Just right!

Fix a stall by bending the rear of the stabilizer down slightly.

Fix a dive by bending the rear of the stabilizer up slightly.

If the plane turns to one side or the other, adjust it until it flies straight, as in pattern 2.

Fix a left turn by slightly bending the rear edge of the left wing down, the rear edge of the right wing up, and the rudder right.

Just right!

Fix a right turn by doing the opposite of 1.