Weather related question from low time pilot

[rbrady]

It was raining pretty hard around here the other day and I wondered how precipitation in the atmosphere effects a wings ability to generate lift. When it is raining really hard it seems like water is taking up a pretty good % of the atmosphere and lift would decrease. Are you supposed to increase airspeed when precip is falling?

Thanks

 

[pdub20s]

It was raining pretty hard around here the other day and I wondered how precipitation in the atmosphere effects a wings ability to generate lift. When it is raining really hard it seems like water is taking up a pretty good % of the atmosphere and lift would decrease. Are you supposed to increase airspeed when precip is falling?

Thanks

you shouldn't need to. The amount of precip. in the air isnt enough create a big problem w/ lift in flight. May be bumpy though...

 

[Smarta$$]

you shouldn't need to. The amount of precip. in the air isnt enough create a big problem w/ lift in flight. May be bumpy though...

To my way of thinking, water is a fluid just like air. Would a wing not work under water? It is different, I think than how humitidy affects engine performance. But that is just my opinion.

 

[Amish RakeFight]

Well for one thing, as the air becomes more humid it becomes less dense. IOW, density altitude increases which will affect performance and aerodynamic lift. But this is negligible compared with the downpour that rain itself falls from or out of. It isn't necessarily the same thing as destroying lift per se, but rather creates a downward force which if one is attempting to hold altitude may cause an increase in AOA which would would slow the plane down slightly due to the induced drag created. Most light rain won't be much of an issue for the average transport aircraft, unless you're talking thunderstorm precipitation.

An increase in airspeed might be required due to the downpour which will inevitably set up some windshear where that may cause a decrease in airspeed, necessitating an increase in power to compensate for the loss of airspeed.

 

[pdub20s]

would it be safe to say that it depends on the stability of the air????

 

[Oakum_Boy]

Humidity affects performance, but that isn't accounted for as far as I know. Many aircraft use added speed for rotation during high altitude and hot conditions for achieving adequate momentum in case of engine failure. This ensures v2 is achieved at 35' at the latest.