Thread: Can a Plane on a Treadmill Take Off?
View Single Post
  #5  
Old February 4th 06, 09:42 PM posted to rec.aviation.student,rec.aviation.piloting
Dave Doe
external usenet poster
  
Posts: n/a
Default Can a Plane on a Treadmill Take Off?
In article ,
says...

"muff528" wrote in message
news:OW2Ff.179$DV2.5@trnddc07...

.....OR relative to each other? If so, there could be just enough thrust
applied to overcome frictional
forces and the airplane doesn't move relative to the world so airspeed is
0.

That would have to be either a very underpowered airplane, or wheels with a
lot of friction.

BUT WAIT!!! .... ANY two objects can be said to be moving (or not) at
equal
speeds relative to each other. A point
on the conveyer belt moving east at 4mph and a jet moving west at 600mph
each have a relative velocity of 604

But there's the trick. A treadmill belt isn't really moving at all, it's
turning.
Try this for a brain scrambler. Think about a tire on your car, driving down
the highway. At the point where the tire contacts the ground, it's speed is
zero. 180° away, at the top, it is moving forward at twice the speed of the
car.

Negative - yer forgetting centripetal force.

http://www.wordiq.com/definition/Centripetal

--
Duncan