Can circular wings work on an airplane? #engineering

Wont handle down drafts or anything above 40 MPH .. Welcome to 1906. 🤣

It works on model-level because at a such small scale the fuel burn is negligible and structural weight is proportionally tiny. Scaling it up to a commercial airliner size is not realistic. It might be able to fly, but the fuel efficiency would be a gigantic problem. Circular wings have a very low aspect ratio, which produces less lift-to-drag ratios, typically below 10, compared to around 18-20 for modern airliner wings. It would be economically unviable at commercial scale. The so called parasitic drag rises sharply with circular wings, because there is no wingtip vortices to benefit from. Lockheed did serious attempt at a 52 m commercial transport in the 1980s, but abandoned it because the parasitic drag, and also manufacturing difficulties proved too overwhelmingly difficult and costly.

COURAGE !

How do you control avionics?

Very intelligent person

Much more complicated, less stiff and less efficient. In a ring only the horizontal component of the wing gives the lift. Material is much more efficiently used in conventional wings that are all horizontal.

The problem would come in the form of storage. How do you store a plane that has to have that much ceiling clearance? You might as well build a standard airship at that point with an inflatable core. Which still would bend under immense wind pressure from high speeds.

Coanda effect - it's durprising why modern engineering does not use this effect to improve fuel consumption and flight stability.

You’re going to be kidnapped by the "USA Air Force" or Elon Musk, depending on which of the two is faster. Just joking. Awesome work!

... perfect for round trips.

All that is needed is the ability to create lift. Airplanes work by pushing the air down.

When making a circular wing, you need to account weight / lift capacity at conçurent speed. Also the bigger the ring, the more air pressure you can use...but there is a lot more going on. The plane as to be at the epicenter of the ring and it has to be able to freely rotate.

Самолет с такими габаритами будет проблематично хранить в помещении при необходимости Проще построить в ширину, чем в высоту

I think this type of aircraft would work better in less atmospheric pressure. Where agility is more important than lift.

There is a reason zeppelins existed. It was the first step.

Reinventing the wheel? Great efforts!

Interesting

honestly makes me think of these warp drives.

No ailerons so it’s not going to be as agile.