angle of attack

American  

noun

1. especially British, angle of incidence.  Aeronautics. the acute angle between the chord of an aircraft wing or other airfoil and the direction of the relative wind.

2. Railroads. the angular attitude of a wheel flange to the rail, especially on curves.

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angle of attack British  

noun

1. Also called: angle of incidence.  the acute angle between the chord line of an aerofoil and the undisturbed relative airflow

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Etymology

Origin of angle of attack

First recorded in 1905–10

Example Sentences

They discovered that the corrugated wing performance was better when the angle of attack, that angle at which the wind meets the wing, was greater than 30°.

From Science Daily • Jan. 26, 2024

In the Ethiopian Air crash, this angle of attack reading jumped from about 12° to 74.5° in less than a second, which would clearly be physically impossible for a flying machine weighing over 100,000 pounds.

From Salon • Jan. 26, 2024

Alice's attorneys used a novel angle of attack called a Product Liability lawsuit, arguing that the site was defective in its design.

From BBC • Nov. 22, 2023

Rugna’s taken demonic possession, that increasingly threadbare horror trope, and twisted it around until he found his own angle of attack.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 6, 2023

I wanted to find out first of all if the ailerons had any tendency to flutter under a high angle of attack condition.

From Test Pilot by Collins, Jimmy