why does an airplane have a "flight ceiling," a maximum altitude above which it can't obtain enough to lift to

Question

why does an airplane have a "flight ceiling," a maximum altitude above which it can't obtain enough to lift to balance the downward force of gravity?

Answer 1

As you go farther up in the atmosphere, there is less and less air density, so theres not enough atmosphere to generate the lift to keep the plane aloft.

For example, planes like the U-2 Dragonlady, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lockheed_U-2
are designed to fly at very high altitudes...note how large the wings are for this very reason. Theres less air at 75,000 feet where the U-2 flys, and the large wings create more lift in the less dense atmosphere.

Answer 2

The simple answer I can think of is the general way airplanes get their lift. When they are going through the air at high speeds, the air flows over the wings in such a way that the air flows faster on the top and slower on the bottom. This creates (by Bernoulli's principles) a higher pressure on the bottom of the wing than the top. This creates a force upward (lift

higher altitude you get, the less atmosphere there is. The flight ceiling is where the air is almost too thin to be able to provide that upward force due to the differences in pressure (the less air, the less lift)

Answer 3

The available lift depends on the density of the air. The airplane's maximum airspeed will be limited by its available power, and that airspeed will generate a lift proportional to the air density. When that lift falls to the airplane's weight, it can climb no higher.

Answer 4

The AS 350 Ecureuil touched down on the perfect of Mt Everest and set the international checklist some years back, yet as quickly as returned it does not make alot of expertise for it to fly that extreme because of the overall performance and blades are actually not the terrific thank you to propel at extreme altitude the place the air is far less dense

Answer 5

Gods laws which we call physics or constant so we can plan our lives around them. The engineers design the plane using these laws. One can only live within the law