Welcome Guest. Sign in or Signup

1 Answers

Will a plane traveling faster glide farther than a plane traveling slower?

Asked by: 3760 views , , ,
Aerodynamics

If there was complete engine failure (and all other things being equal), would a passenger jet traveling at 600 mph when the engines stopped glide farther than a plane traveling at 400 mph when the engines stopped?

Logically, you can argue that, sure, the faster plane has more forward momentum and would travel farther.  However, I think there is an optimum speed for the glide ratio, and being too fast or too slow would decrease your glide distance.

Thus, the plane going 600 mph has slow down more to get to the optimum speed than does the plane traveling 400 mph, and less efficient glide during that slow down period would ultimately shorten the overall glide distance for the faster plane.

What say you, oh wise internet?

Ace Any FAA Written Test!
Actual FAA Questions / Free Lifetime Updates
The best explanations in the business
Fast, efficient study.
Pass Your Checkride With Confidence!
FAA Practical Test prep that reflects actual checkrides.
Any checkride: Airplane, Helicopter, Glider, etc.
Written and maintained by actual pilot examiners and master CFIs.
The World's Most Trusted eLogbook
Be Organized, Current, Professional, and Safe.
Highly customizable - for student pilots through pros.
Free Transition Service for users of other eLogs.
Our sincere thanks to pilots such as yourself who support AskACFI while helping themselves by using the awesome PC, Mac, iPhone/iPad, and Android aviation apps of our sponsors.

1 Answers



  1. Brian on Apr 11, 2014

    You’re hinting at L/D max. Yes, a speed exists that is the most efficient glide speed for a given air frame design. If, in your scenario, two identically designed airplanes flew at those speeds one of them would glide farther. Which one? Well that’s a question of design. A space shuttles best glide speed might be 600 mph, where a 747’s might be 400 mph.

    In other words, fly best glide (L/D max) for best glide performance.

    0 Votes Thumb up 0 Votes Thumb down 0 Votes


The following terms have been auto-detected the question above and any answers or discussion provided. Click on a term to see its definition from the Dauntless Aviation JargonBuster Glossary.

Answer Question

Our sincere thanks to all who contribute constructively to this forum in answering flight training questions. If you are a flight instructor or represent a flight school / FBO offering flight instruction, you are welcome to include links to your site and related contact information as it pertains to offering local flight instruction in a specific geographic area. Additionally, direct links to FAA and related official government sources of information are welcome. However we thank you for your understanding that links to other sites or text that may be construed as explicit or implicit advertising of other business, sites, or goods/services are not permitted even if such links nominally are relevant to the question asked.