Ski-jump (aviation)

Common card · No. 424083

In aviation, a ski-jump is an upwardly curved ramp that allows a fixed-wing aircraft to take off from a runway that is shorter than what conventional takeoff requires. By providing an upward vector from the ski-jump's normal force, the aircraft leaves the runway at an elevated angle similar to how a ski jumper takes off. This elevated launch angle provides the aircraft a longer airborne time despite a lower speed, where it can continue accelerating under its own engines until reaching enough airspeed to obtain the aerodynamic lift needed to overcome gravity and sustain flight. In modern naval aviation, ski-jumps are commonly used to launch shipborne jet aircraft from flight decks of aircraft carriers that lack aircraft catapults for assisted takeoffs, where the runway lengths are too short for conventional takeoffs for these aircraft (which are much heavier than the older propeller aircraft) and therefore likely resulting in them crashing into the water after launching off the ship. It...

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