Airplane
From Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
An airplane or aeroplane is a kind of aircraft, something that can fly, but is heavier than air. Airplanes are sometimes called just 'planes. All airplanes have wings. Gliders are a type of airplane that do not have any engines.
A steam-powered unmanned airplane, that weighed 9 lbs.[1], was built by John Stringfellow in 1848. It could fly by itself without needing to be dropped from high up. There were gliders before this, but they had to fly by being pushed off a building or hill.
The first powered, controlled, sustained airplane flight was made by the Wright Brothers in 1903, in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. By 1905 they had built a practical airplane.[2]
Today, airplanes fly between many cities and bring many people and cargo. Big cities usually have an airport - the place where airplanes can land and take off safely. Some large cities like New York City have more than one airport.
Many airplanes are used by air forces to defend countries. These airplanes either carry missiles for combat with other airplanes, or are used for dropping bombs on the ground.
Airplanes let people travel longer distances faster than before. To fly from New York to London is about 7 hours. Before airplanes, it would take one week or more on a ship.
Sometimes, people are scared to fly on an airplane. However, statistics show airplanes are safer than cars.
Two large companies that make airplanes are Boeing and Airbus.