Do airplanes have a "Reverse" like cars? Can they back up?

Answer 1

Airplane wheels are free-spinning; they don't have a forward or reverse, they simply turn in the direction the plane is being pushed by the engines.

Some propeller planes can pitch their props in such a way that they can move in reverse. Jets can use their thrust reversers, but it would take so much engine power to push the plane backwards, that they never do. Depending on the plane and type of jet engine, they may not be able to do it, and it could damage the engines.

Planes are pushed back by towing vehicles.

Answer 2

The answer should be: It depends on a some factors.
As a matter of fact, airplane wheels are free to rotate in any direction, so it will not be a problem for an aircraft to move backwards. However, there is no gear system (anything like forward or reverse) in a plane like a car.
A plane will move as long as the thrust produced by the engine exceeds the frictional force of the plane against the runway (to put it extremely simply), and that invariably depends upon the weight of the plane.
While, in case of some aircrafts, reverse thrust (produced by deploying the thrust reversers) suffice to move the plane backwards, heavy aircrafts invariably need assistance, and that's why they are given 'pushback'.
However, though some aircrafts definitely are able to move backwards by the action of thrust reversers, deploying thrust reversers when engine is idle is not advisable, as that damages the engine. Thrust reversers are hence generally used to slow an airplane down on a runway, like after a landing or during RTO (Rejected Take Off).

Answer 3

AIRPLANES ON THE GROUND CAN BACK UP IF THEY ARE THE RIGHT KIND. MOST JET AIRLINERS DO NOT BACK UP. THEY ARE PUSHED OUT FROM THE DOCK BY A TUG.
THE AIRPLANES THAT CAN BACK INTO A PARKING SPACE ARE TURBO-PROPS. THEY DO THIS BY REVERSING THE PITCH OF THE PROPELLERS. THIS CAUSES THE AIRPLANE ENGINES TO PUSH THE AIR TOWARDS THE FRONT OF THE AIRPLANE INSTEAD OF TO THE REAR.
AIRPLANES DO NOT HAVE GEARS LIKE A CAR. SO JUST PUTTING INTO REVERSE WOULD BE OUT OF THE QUESTION.
ON MODERN DAY AIRCRAFT THERE ARE THINGS CALLED THRUST REVERSERS, USED WHEN LANDING TO SLOW THE AIRCRAFT DOWN. THESE COULD, I GUESS, MAKE AN AIRPLANE BACK UP BUT THEY ARE NOT WIDLEY USED FOR THIS. THEY ARE LIKE A FLAP THAT COMES FROM THE SIDE OF THE ENGINE THAT FOLDS OVER THE BACK END OF THE ENGINE AND THEN MAKES THE THRUST GO TO THE FORWARD END OF THE AIRPLANE, THUS SLOWING IT DOWN DRAMATICLLY.

Answer 4

When I flew Dornier 228 turboprops we frequently put the propellors in to the "Beta range", or reverse, so we could reverse out of bays. We also used reverse thrust on landing in 1 particular airport.. Very nasty and definitely not something i'd recommend, we had a 1 way in 1 way out airstrip which was 694 metres long surrounded by 5000 ft mountains. Obviously you'd only use it when you were quite close to the ground but the aircraft would hit the ground with a huge thud.

On jets you can use reverse thrust to "Power back" works by putting a little forward thrust to get air in to the engine then placing the engine in to reverse thrust to reverse. You can do it by slamming it straight in to reverse but it's not good for the engine, and the main problem is that all sorts of debris and stones would be propelled forward which could break windows and cause damage.

Answer 5

Some prop driven planes have "constant speed propellers" and the blade pitch can be adjusted from a control in the cockpit. They in some cases, especially float planes, can be "reversed" but this is used for dynamic braking or on floats to keep from moving since they have no wheel brakes. On jets with thrust reversers they are only used for slowing the plane down after landing. They will almost never be used at slow speeds due to the amount of debris that could be sucked back into the engine.

Answer 6

They can do this, but it is done very rarely. It is called a throttle back. This has been done when airplanes are parked at a gate. The thrust reversers, which are used on landing to slow the plane, are used. Again, this is very rare. Most of the time, the aircraft simply are pushed back by an airport tug.

Answer 7

Jet engines don't reverse, there is a re-director that vectors the thrust forward for stopping.

I only know of one light plane that has a sort of 'reverse' that was the 300 Hp Cherokee 6 with reverse pitch prop. I used to pull one up on the ramp, reverse the prop pitch and back into the parking spot... got real 'looks' from the public, let me tell you.!

Answer 8

Yes, they are called thrust reversers. When the plane lands, the pilot puts the engines into reverse thrust, this works in conjunction with aircraft brakes to slow the aircraft. The aircraft can use thrust reversers to back up off of the gates if necessary.

Answer 9

If on the ground they have what is called reverse thrusters over the exhaust that redirects the thrust tward the front of the plane too achive reverse. I hope this is helpful!

Answer 10

Most airplanes can back up with either there reverse thruster(eventhough its not safe practice) or many prop-planes have veriable pitch props that can reverse the airflow as well.