free flight
Soaring without engine
Free flight refers to unpowered flight—the movement of an aircraft or projectile after thrust ends.
A paper airplane is in free flight once released.
In model aviation, free flight designates planes that fly without radio control or tethers: The free flight competition required planes to stay aloft for three minutes.
The term also applies to birds or insects flying unrestrained, and in rocketry, to the coasting phase after engine burnout.
- soaringRising effortlessly upward
- glidingEngineless aerial movement
- unpoweredHaving no motor
- glide pathAircraft's landing descent route
- thermalPertaining to warmth
ridge lift · air current · wingspan · spread wings · lift · drift · airborne · taking off · birdlike · birds of prey · sailplane · hang glider · updraft · weightless · floating · sky · wind · feathers
- aircraftairplane, airliner, airplanes, plane, biplane
- balloonslatex balloons, latex balloon, hydrogen balloons, foil balloons, helium balloons
- flight simulationcockpit, joystick, landing, takeoff, autopilot
- model aircraftmodel airplane, model kits, RC helicopter, quadcopter, model aircraft
- falconryfalcon, falconer, hood, gauntlet, jesses
- paraglidingwing, glider, paramotor, harness, risers