Top 7 Lessons About Airplane Facts To Learn Before You Fly!

Oluwatosin Michael
Oct 19, 2023 By Oluwatosin Michael
Originally Published on Dec 23, 2021
Find out more airplane facts below!
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Age: 3-18
Read time: 9.3 Min

An airplane is widely known as aeroplane or aircraft.

The very important components in an airplane are wing system to sustain it in flight, its tail surfaces so the wings can be stable. Surfaces that can move are helpful in the flying attitude of the plane and the most important element is the power supply that pushes the airplane through the air.

When a plane lands, the flight path has lights to direct it. Flight attendants, or the flight crew, have their own personal space with secret bedrooms on the plane, and get to rest after long haul flights.

In planes, the airplane tires are never known to blow up. All pilots flying internationally must be skilled. The flight data recorder keeps track of all flights.

It's very rare for planes to have non fatal plane injuries in a crash. The Qantas (QF) has never had a fatal accident involving their commercial flight. The average cruising speed of a plane is 547 mph (880 kph).

When American Airlines were trying to save money back in '80s, the airline saved 40,000 USD. In planes, the seat belt sign must always be obeyed.

A trip from New York to London will only need about a third of the plane's total fuel capacity. A twin engine plane can safely cruise with only one engine. A cargo jet is the largest plane in the world.

The long distance average cruising altitude or average altitude is from 31,000- 38,000 ft (9,448-11,582 m). All airlines need to protect pilots with the windshield. The wings of the plane fly smooth with air passing over its surface.

Planes can fly for more than five hours with one engine. The fuel is not all used up during one single flight. Many fatal accidents happen during takeoff, and the initial climb. Airplane water contains 37 different bacterial species.

Planes also do have an overhead compartment. Airplane tires are made of thick rubber, unlike car tires. Sometimes airplanes need to dump fuel if there is too much in the gas tank.

Here are some more plane facts.

Airplanes can withstand lightning strikes. Planes are specially designed to withstand lightning strikes, planes are regularly stuck by lightning. Lightning strikes an airplane once every 1,000 hours during flight statistically. To date, there have been no reports of lightning bringing down a plane.

There is no safe place on a plane. The FAA reports that planes do not have a safest seat; it is just known that the middle and the last seats have the lowest fatality rate compared to the front. Regarding this, plane crashes are extremely rare.

The tires of a plane are specifically designed to not pop during the landing of a plane. It is designed to carry loads of weight and can take a landing of a plane at 170 mph (273.5 kph).

The cabin crew dims the lights of the plane while landing incase an emergency takes place then it'll be easier for the passengers to exit without the light hurting their eyes.

The plane can fly with help of only one engine, one of the two jet engines are not needed but there is an extra engine for backup. While flying the plane can use one engine and while landing it does not require any help from an engine as the pilot must guide the plane to its landing.

Smoking is not allowed on planes.

The tiny holes in the window of an airplane are to regulate the air pressure of the airplane cabin.

Airplane meals have a very bad reputation. The reason for this is because of the humid conditions of the plane, the humidity can make the food more dull.

In every passenger plane, passengers are taught the use of oxygen masks, this is incase the plane experiences a sudden loss in cabin pressure. The oxygen mask can only be used for 15 minutes; this sounds terrifying, but in the situation 15 minutes is more than sufficient.

The white lines in the sky that are left by the plane are due to condensation and that is how it gets its name 'contrails'.

If you enjoyed this article, why not also read about why do people travel or antarctica facts here on Kidadl?

Plane Crash Facts

Reports have claimed that 2014 was the worst year for airplanes. Plane crashes are very rare, and also thousands of planes take off per day. Flying is the safest way to travel in spite of the impressions people get by watching the news.

Plane accidents have a very high survival rate of 80-100% but in a few plane crashes only 0-20% of people survive.

It is commonly known that plane crashes and attacks get a lot of attention but at the same time they are also extremely rare.

Car crashes are common and happen usually everyday, air travel is safer as they are handled with much more care and safety. When people have a fear of flying, they will use other modes of transport.

The most commonly used transport methods are cars and boats; with more people driving, there will be more risk of a car accident, which will just increase the death rate on road.

Plane crashes are very rare and get a lot of attention because planes are a huge mode of transport, they must be handled by professionals in this case. Planes tend to crash because of a small mistake that took place during its journey or before, but plane crashes are not very common as they are handled by professionals.

Airplanes are much safer than driving on roads. As planes are known to crash less, they kill fewer people.

It is reported that about 88 planes have disappeared since 1948, this count has been given by the Aviation Safety Network, a private initiative that has a record and database of the planes and also crash data, regarding the missing planes, they have found no trace of any of the planes.

Jet planes crash more during its take off and landing, 2003-2012 had a lot of crashes while take off and landing.

It is reported that flying in North America is safer than flying in Africa.

In a few crashes, the people that sat towards the back of the plane survived. This is not known for all plane crashes.

It is reported that flying in North America

Crazy Airplane Facts

The air on an airplane is known to be as dry as the Sahara. The reason the skin gets dry while in an airplane is because the pressurised air in the plane's cabin is usually kept below 20% humidity, that is the average humidity of the Sahara desert.

The fastest commercial plane was known to fly at twice the speed of sound, the plane was called Concorde and also has the record for the fastest flight as it transported passengers for JFK in New York to London. The duration of this plane was 2 hours, 52 minutes and 59 seconds

It is reported that this plane retired from the sky after the passenger numbers fell, this was because of a tragic crash that took place in 2000, this crash killed all passengers and crew.

Planes can fly with only one engine. Commercial airplanes are safely designed to fly perfectly with just one engine and pilots are professionally trained to guide the plane down for its landing.

The safest seat in a plane is towards the back of the plane; in one crash it was known to have more survivors at the back of the plane. However, it does not usually happen in all plane crashes.

A crazy fact that not many people know is that commercial pilots and co-pilots usually eat different meals. This is not a rule by the FAA, but most of the pilots and co-pilots must eat different meals, in case any one of the meals get any of the pilots sick.

The lights dim for landing and take off for one reason; this is not to annoy the passengers, rather it is incase an emergency takes place the passengers can exit without the lights hurting their eyes. This is only if a plane doesn't stick a good landing.

The toilet is not the dirtiest place on the plane, however it turns out that the most dirty place on a plane is the tray table people eat their meals on.

Airplane Facts For Third Graders

An airplanes wings are fixed, they fly with the thrust of their engines. Airplanes are used as a mode of transport for people, cargo and military.

The force of lift helps the airplane in flying. The force of lift is generated by the engine and it is propelled forward, this motion is called thrust. Modern airplanes use jet engines or a propeller.

The first flight was at 10 am by the Wright brothers and flew it 120 ft (36.5 m) in 12 seconds. The Wright Flyer was designed and built by the Wright brothers. The first plane was build and flown by the Wright brothers. Airplanes now are manufactured by several different companies.

Military aircrafts also known as military planes are used globally as military forces. Military aircrafts are used for military purposes, transporting cargo and for combat. Military airplanes have different types like bombers and fighters. There are also many types of military planes like transport and surveillance planes.

The plane that can takeoff and land on water is called a sea plane. The many different types of airplanes include, manned and unmanned.

Biggest Airplane Facts

The first airplane was the Wright Flyer, and it was invented by the Wright brothers. The first flight has lasted for at least a minute. The oldest airline was established in 1919 and it is called the Dutch carrier KLM.

It was connected from the Netherlands to the Dutch Indies. The KML had also operated from Amsterdam to Jakarta, making it the longest route of its day.

The fastest plane in the world was the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird. This airplane reached the speed of 2193 mph (3,530 kph). The current fastest plane commercial airplane is the Boeing 747-8i which is being operated by Air China and Lufthansa.

The amount of planes in the sky is still unknown, but in 2017 there was an average of 9,728 airplanes in the sky, which was known to be carrying around 1.2 million people in the sky.

Passengers and pilots do not eat the same food, in fact pilots and co-pilots eat different meals just in case one meal is not right. Airplanes usually have a bad reputation in food, due to the low humidity. The low humidity makes the food more dull.

An airplane is specially designed to withstand lightning strikes, planes getting struck by lightning is very common and till date there has been no report of lightning taking down a plane.

An airplane is built in a way for its wings to cut through the wind as it flies through the sky, it is built in a way where the wings cannot bend. There have not been any reports of plane wings bending, the plane wings can stretch a lot before breaking.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for airplane facts then why not take a look at facts about Pablo Picasso or Albuquerque facts.

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Written by Oluwatosin Michael

Bachelor of Science specializing in Microbiology

Oluwatosin Michael picture

Oluwatosin MichaelBachelor of Science specializing in Microbiology

With a Bachelor's in Microbiology from the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Oluwatosin has honed his skills as an SEO content writer, editor, and growth manager. He has written articles, conducted extensive research, and optimized content for search engines. His expertise extends to leading link-building efforts and revising onboarding strategies. 

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