angle of attack
2
7.7
- noun
- Specialized
:
ángulo de ataque
- The boundary layer can separate from the top surface of an airfoil if the angle of attack is greater than the so-called stall angle.
- high angle of attack
Examples
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When the desired angle of attack is reached, the pilot pulls the starboard control back.
Academic text (1991) -
All right, So you can actually control the angle of attack in a number of ways.
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You want to be able to lock something down and then choose your angle of attack on the mill.
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Slight adjustments in the controls might be required to maintain the angle of attack.
Academic text (1991) -
The pilot changes the wing's angle of attack to create the Bernoulli effect.
Blog text (1) -
At high angles of attack, aircraft can lose control and aerodynamic stability and enter spins from which they cannot recover.
Academic text (2003) -
One of the biggest hazards was stalling: a loss of lift due to pitching the wings at too sharp an angle of attack.
Academic text (2003) -
Highly maneuverable military aircraft, such as the F-15, F-16, and F-18, call for designers to ensure that the planes can operate at high angles of attack.
Academic text (2003) -
During takeoff, the pilot must monitor the angle of attack to ensure the aircraft gains enough lift.
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To improve performance, engineers often analyze the angle of attack of the wings during wind tunnel tests.
Surface Forms
Morphology
angle + of + attack
The phrase literally combines 'angle' and 'attack', so a learner can roughly infer it refers to the angle related to some kind of 'attack' or approach; however the precise aeronautical sense (angle between airflow and the wing’s chord line) is technical and not fully predictable from everyday meanings of 'attack'. Because there is a clear compositional relation but with a specialized, domain-specific sense that B1 learners are unlikely to derive without exposure, this is best classified as semi-transparent.
Etymology
The phrase angle of attack comes from pilots who described how the air 'hits' a wing: angle is the tilt of the wing and attack gives the picture of the air striking the surface. So it means the angle between the air and the wing that controls 'lift' and can cause a 'stall' if it gets too steep.