What is the difference between flaps and slats

The amount of lift generated by a wing depends on the shape of the airfoil, the wing area, and the aircraft velocity. During takeoff and landing the airplane's velocity is relatively low. To keep the lift high to avoid objects on the ground! The part on the leading edge is called a slat , while the part on the trailing edge is called a flap. The flaps and slats move along metal tracks built into the wings. A: Flaps and slats increase the lift that the wing can produce at a lower speed.

To keep the takeoff and landing speeds as low as possible, the design engineers include highly efficient flaps and slats on the wing. Answer: The slats on the leading edge of the wing allow the airplane to take off and land at lower speeds.

When extended they alter the airflow so the wing can produce more lift at lower speed. For high-speed flight, they are retracted to reduce drag. Q: If during taxi for takeoff, you notice the flaps are not extended, should you call a flight attendant? A: There are times when keeping the flaps retracted while taxiing is the correct action. See these diagrams with angle of attack and lift coefficient:. As the lift coefficient is inversely proportional to the minimum airspeed, a higher CL will allow a lower Vmin.

Slats and flaps both change the shape of the wing when they are extended and allow the wing to generate more lift so that the airplane can fly slower. Operationally they are both retracted and flush against the wing except for takeoff and landing at which time they are extended. Pilots tend to refer to them together because they are used for the same purpose and used at the same time. In fact, they are normally even moved by using the same control typically the slats comes out when selecting first detent, and then the flaps come out progressively further at each detent :.

Slats are on the front of the wing on the left in this picture and the flaps on on the back of the wing on the right. As you can see, they both tend to make the wing bigger and more curved when they are extended:.

Sign up to join this community. The best answers are voted up and rise to the top. Stack Overflow for Teams — Collaborate and share knowledge with a private group. Create a free Team What is Teams? Learn more. What is the difference between flaps and slats? Ask Question. Asked 7 years, 9 months ago.