Pilot Institute

NOVEMBER 16, 2024

It works by reading the difference between static pressure and total pressure from air flowing into a pitot tube. For instance, an aircraft maintaining a steady IAS at 30,000 feet will have a faster TAS than at sea level due to reduced drag from thinner air. In a climb or descent, this is just as true.

True Airspeed 52

True Airspeed Indicated Airspeed Altimeter Lift 52

Pilot Institute

NOVEMBER 1, 2024

And ice doesn’t just make things slippery, it messes with the airflow over the wings, cuts down on lift, and ramps up drag. This leads to a serious loss of lift and an increase in drag. This roughness adds to friction drag, which can reduce lift and increase drag by as much as 50% on a wing’s leading edge and upper surface.

Pitot Tube 52

Pitot Tube Drag Lift Airfoil 52

Vintage Aviation News

DECEMBER 26, 2024

Foust would describe the incident thusly: “The aircraft looked like the pitot tube was stationary with the aircraft rotating around it. Foust did everything in his training to try and recover from the spin, including deploying his plane’s drag chute. Very flat and rotating quite slowly.

Pitot Tube 59

Pitot Tube Ground Effect Drag Pilot 59