The 1st TRULEY Aerodynamic paper airplane

Every one knows that paper airplanes would not fly if it weren't for lift. So one day while looking through a book of paper airplanes I saw a "twirly bird" you know those little helicopters that are just a crude propeller and a stick down the middle that you rub between your palms so it will fly? And it said to fold a piece of paper in half with a straw in the center, and then to glue the other side shut. This creates a very good airfoil for no trouble at all, and so I thought- Why not use that in a paper air plane? After a series of tests this is what worked best for me, but performance can vary big time with a few errors (don't worry though, I have plenty of fixes you can try).

BTW: I ran the math and this thing has an average 6 to 1 glide ratio, but my best is around 19 to 1

SUPPLIES:
printer paper x1
your run-of-the-mill bendy straw x1

This takes five minutes so please try it out!

The videos are the final product

Step 1 THE SUPER EASY STEP!

My paper airplane is what most people call the "classic" paper airplane (long, slender, delta wings) so check the picture and if you know how to make it (and you probably do) go ahead and skip to step two.

If you don't know how to make it, just follow the pictures:

VIDEO #2

Comments

[ELEMENT777]

awesome design and i agree its very aerodynamic

[iwancoppa]

I did a review of this guide, and have two conclusions.

I made 5 paper gliders, and tested them all with and without straws, and then i cambered the wings, and tested again.

My conclusions are:

1. the gliders worked better WITHOUT the straws.
2. if the leading edge of the wing was folded down slightly, or cambered, it increased the performance of all  of the gliders.

hope this helps

[Inventor X]

Would notebook paper work for this?
Is it sturdy enough?
Please answer.

[orun ultim]

added a tailfin but I haven't tested in an open space yet.

[mattias law]

i used a pencil instead of a straw and got the same affect. i didnt really see all that much difference. a better glider, one i designed is here.
http://www.instructables.com/id/mattias_super_awesome_glider/

[orun ultim]

in theory the empty tube of the straw should be lighter then the pencil. So physics disagrees with you

[inventor1488]

The straw is intended to be removed, its just one thing I happened to have at my desk when I made this and didn't think to use a pencil (though the resulting airfoil would have been the same, as would have been performance when the pencil is removed). To Mattias Law: this airfoil has only been tested with this design of paper airplane, and im sure some designs benifit more than others. Also, there is EXTREME performance increases, in LOW speeds, if you chuck it the wing creates so much lift that it rises, stalls, and plumets to the ground. Note that in the videos the plane would go as far as it could untill friction slowed it to a crawl,and then would wobble almost in place before it fell. This is due to its nature of operating like a plane, and stalling, rather than like a glider and skimming across the gound when to low powered to stay aloft

[GorillazMiko]

Nice, but could you embed the video? I will be here if you need any help.

[gmjhowe]

I like how the plan has different options at the end. makes it a bit more varied. looks sweet as well.