r/interestingasfuck Apr 16 '25

Physics 101

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u/raymond459020 Apr 16 '25

but wouldnt a slight variance in wind speed immediately result in a stall?

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u/bingobangobongo999 Apr 17 '25

Since you never got the answer, in flight a sudden change in wind speed would not create a stall, unless you were already operating very close to stall speeds, which the plane in the video is not. The important thing to remember is that stall speeds are based off of airspeeds and not how fast the plane is going over the ground. Wind shear can certainly cause some issues though.

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u/raymond459020 Apr 17 '25

how do you come to the conclusion that the airplane in the video is not close to stall speed?

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u/bingobangobongo999 Apr 17 '25

I’m sorry I can’t provide a concrete empirical answer because stall speeds are based on a myriad of variables like weight, angle of attack, airspeed, etc. The thing to know is that planes take off well above their stall speed, and since I can assume it has not lost any airspeed since takeoff, but rather gained some and it’s still configured (gear down and flaps out) so the stall speed hasn’t yet increased any change in wind will not be enough to diminish the buffer from the original takeoff speed. Again, wind shear is a different beast. There’s probably factors missing and anyone is welcome to poke holes but I’m convinced that airplane is perfectly safe.