If cars lose significant power at high altitudes, how are ICE-powered planes overcoming this challenge?

Question

If cars lose significant power at high altitudes, how are ICE-powered planes overcoming this challenge?

In: Technology

Answer 1

Most of them don’t. This does limit their power at altitude. They might have a ram air intake which improves their power at speed and this is often behind the propeller to push even more air into the engine. But in general these airplanes are not good at altitudes. If you need power at altitude the airplane needs a supercharger or turbocharger. This helps push more air into the engine and is less dependent on the pressure.