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Why do many airliners have winglets, the bent-up wing tips?

They weaken wingtip vortices, cutting drag and saving fuel.

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  1. To weaken wingtip vortices and save fuel ✔
  2. To make the plane look faster
  3. To hold extra landing lights

Why: Swirling vortices at the wing tips cause drag. Winglets weaken those swirls. NASA flight tests found a 6.5 percent fuel savings on a 707-type airliner.

Huh, didn't know that: Richard Whitcomb of NASA Langley tested winglets in the mid-1970s.

The dad joke
Why did the airliner get winglets? It wanted to look on the up and up.
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References

Answer: To weaken wingtip vortices and save fuel. Swirling vortices at the wing tips cause drag. Winglets weaken those swirls. NASA flight tests found a 6.5 percent fuel savings on a 707-type airliner.

  1. Winglets / Factors of Aerodynamic Drag, NASA Glenn Beginner's Guide to Aeronautics www1.grc.nasa.gov/beginners-guide-to-aeronautics/winglets
    The idea behind the winglet is to reduce the strength of the tip vortex
    Checked 2026-10-10.

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