Designer's Notebook

Taxi testing may seem to be a mere formality, but it is a vital step toward bringing a new aircraft to flight, and is not without its dangers.

Builders are often in a rush to prove the airworthiness of their homebuilt projects, but thorough flight-testing is essential.

Seemingly inconsequential alterations—even mounting an inflight camera on the airframe—can result in big changes to an aircraft’s handling and performance.

Certain situations and configurations just call out for a ducted-fan installation. Barnaby Wainfan explains the benefits and drawbacks.

While two-control airplanes were designed to make a pilot’s life simpler, they come with significant compromises.

One way to solve the problem of flow separation—and stall—is by installing vortex generators on your kit aircraft.

Contrary to popular belief, the frontal area of an airplane is not the most important determinant of drag.

It’s all about lift, and knowing your airplane’s lift margin at a given airspeed tells you what the airplane is capable of.

Nine simple rules, distilled from years of experience (making—and fixing—assorted mistakes), can help any aircraft designer avoid disaster.

Today, monoplanes dominate, but biplanes came first. They had their advantages—and for some of today’s missions, they still do.