Talk:Airplane

Revised Definition

An airplane, also known as an aeroplane (British English), is a powered, fixed-wing aircraft designed for flight in the Earth's atmosphere. It is distinguished from other types of aircraft by the presence of wings that generate lift due to the aircraft's forward motion and the engines that propel it forward. Airplanes are crucial in modern transportation, allowing for efficient travel over long distances for passengers, cargo, and military purposes. They play a significant role in global connectivity and commerce.

Encyclopedia Britannica. (2022). Airplane. Retrieved from https://www.britannica.com/technology/airplane

Oxford English Dictionary. (2021). Aeroplane. Retrieved from https://www.oed.com/view/Entry/2060 TrentDevlin (talk) 01:51, 15 July 2024 (UTC)

Thank you for suggesting a change to the lead of the article, TrentDevlin. Perhaps, in addition to suggesting revised text, you could discuss how it better summarizes the article than the current lead language. My thoughts are that "flight in the Earth's atmosphere" is both assumed, but perhaps constraining, since a future airplane might be designed for the atmosphere of another planet.

I like distinguishing it. That might be more simply accomplished with: "...is an aircraft with fixed wings that generate lift, when propelled forward by thrust from a jet engine, propeller, or rocket engine, whereas other aircraft rely on rotary wings or buoyancy for lift."

I feel that the remaining existing sentences in the first paragraph provide appropriate detail (which, however may become dated).

Cheers, HopsonRoad (talk) 21:21, 15 July 2024 (UTC)

AIRPLANES

How do airplanes fly? 2601:646:8701:E0:E52D:566A:FDD4:27B (talk) 19:49, 8 December 2024 (UTC)

This talk page is for discussion of how to improve the article. Please be more specific, if you feel that it does not adequately explain how airplanes fly. Sincerely, HopsonRoad (talk) 21:25, 8 December 2024 (UTC)

Overly detailed captions?

Gymrat16, notice that you have added a date and place to captions on at least two aircraft images. Few, if any, of the other illustrative images include date and place.

I can understand date and place for images that depict historic events, but I don't see a purpose for including them on routine images. The images simply illustrate the various types of aircraft. Details about date and place don't appear to contribute to the article and just add clutter to the text. You may have a different insight into why they are important to include here. If so, what should be the decision basis for including date and time on other images? Cheers, HopsonRoad (talk) 20:55, 31 January 2025 (UTC)

Spelling

Which spelling is correct Airplane or Aeroplane? ~2026-20254-38 (talk) 17:42, 2 April 2026 (UTC)

Airplane (American English) and aeroplane (Commonwealth English) are both correct. HopsonRoad (talk) 00:36, 3 June 2026 (UTC)