Plane Puzzle

[Machiavelli]

Who told you that?

[b-b5]

why would a plane stand still on a treadmill?

[Machiavelli]

Because the treadmill is going just as fast as the plane, so the plane will stay in the same spot.

[b-b5]

I would agree if we were talking about a car

[Machiavelli]

Cars dont take off

[b-b5]

Cars dont take off

They do sometimes

[Machiavelli]

Never successfully

[b-b5]

well technically the flying bit is successful, its the landing thats a bit dodgy

[sully800]

Man, no one is arguing that the plane will be able to take off, yet 7 people have voted for that option!

Of course the plane will be able to take off. I am not saying it will generate lift without moving....the plane will move forward and take off normally despite being on the treadmill.

[sully800]

Bump.

Since the probability puzzle created some heated debates, I wanted to raise this question from the dead, because I have seen people argue about it for 100's of posts.

I am confident that the plane can take off, and b-b5 is correct

[everywhere116]

The plane on most circumstances cannot take off, unless the wind is going 300 mph against the direction of the plane

[Kokunai]

Because the plane is not moving in space air cannot be passing over the wings enough to give the plane enough lift to take off...Why is this even a question?

[Hoff]

sully please tell us why it will take off?

[sully800]

haha! I'm glad to see the resurrection of this thread.

Well hoff, I ask you this- what is to prevent the plane from taking off?

[spiesr]

It can't take off because it is not moving fast enough in relation to the air around it. It's only moving in relation to the treadmill track.

[Hoff]

unless if there is a crazy amount of wind. The plane is moving 0 mph and thus getting no lift to force the plane to take off. So i ask you, how can it lift off?

[DAZMCFC]

a harrier jump jet can take off vertically so it does not matter what speed the tread mill is going it could take off anyway

[hawkeye]

But is that what were talking about?

[sully800]

unless if there is a crazy amount of wind. The plane is moving 0 mph and thus getting no lift to force the plane to take off. So i ask you, how can it lift off?

But why is the plane not moving forward? The treadmill goes backward just as fast as the plane would normally move forward...but does that hold it in place? Nope! And that is the part that most people miss when they first read the puzzle.

A planes wheels spin freely....the plane does not move forward by rotating its wheels, and similarly the treadmill cannot move the plane backward by moving its wheels.

So the plane would move forward at say, 150mph....the treadmill would move backward at 150mph. This would cause the wheels to spin twice as fast as normal, in this case 300 mph. But the plane would still be able to move forward and take off normally.

[sully800]

Myth Busted!

A plane can take off on a treadmill with no problems.

Episode 97 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MythBuster ... veyor_Belt[/u]

[Neoteny]

Myth Busted!

A plane can take off on a treadmill with no problems.

Episode 97 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MythBuster ... veyor_Belt[/u]

Interesting. I can't quite visualize it, but it sounds good when I read it. I'll have to try to catch that episode.

[dustn64]

Mythbusters save the day.

[SolidLuigi]

YOU GOT ME. I was thinking in terms of a cars wheels making it move instead of a jets engines doing the pushing. Good one, I'll have to remember that

[ParadiceCity9]

How much does the plane weigh?

[C4]

It won't take off because the air movement around it remains the same. It's the difference in air speed between the top and bottom of the wings that provide lift