From what i understand, flaps are used to increase the lift produced by the wing. I also read that flaps slow down the plane, which why they are used to land. All explanations on the internet that I have been able to find boil down to : they increase the lift of the wing. They do not address the fact that flaps slow down the plane. That’s what I as wondering why keeping the flaps down doesn’t make takeoff less efficient, since the engines have to work harder in order to achieve minimum takeoff speed. So, : why do planes takeoff with flaps down ? Thanks
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There are 2 types of drag when you’re talking about aerodynamics
1. Parasitic drag which is drag that doesn’t do any work, it doens’t produce lift.
2. Induced drag which is drag that’s generated by producing lift. No matter what, when you create lift, you do so at the expense of drag. Extending your flaps increases the amount of lift you make at the expense of drag, but it also reduces your take-off speed and the extra drag you produce is easily overcome by the engines being at the max power setting.
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