Biplanes: If One Wing Is Good, Two Must Be Better

Prevalence of biplanes over monoplanes was due almost entirely to practical considerations.

Peter Garrison

Friday, May 30, 2025 at 08:00 AM ET

Verified

Edited By:

Travis Tingle

The prevalence of the biplane over the monoplane was due almost entirely to practical considerations. [Adobe Stock]

Key Takeaways:

Despite early monoplane designs having aerodynamic advantages, biplanes became dominant due to practical considerations such as easier lift generation with weak engines and robust construction methods.
Pioneers like Junkers and Fokker were instrumental in recognizing that thick, cantilever monoplane wings with load-bearing skins offered superior aerodynamics, a design principle still used today.
Biplanes, while easy to build, suffered from significant drag from external bracing and mutual wing interference, a fundamental deficiency later quantified by Max Munk's "General Biplane Theory."
WWI biplane designs incorporated various modifications, including positive stagger and upper wing cutouts, primarily to enhance pilot visibility and facilitate weapon use.

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We associate biplanes with the infancy of aviation, but monoplanes existed from the very earliest days as well. The Bleriot XI that was the first airplane to cross the English Channel was a monoplane, as was the first really effective fighter of World War I, the Fokker Eindecker. German industrialist and all-around genius Hugo Junkers even built an all-metal cantilever low-wing monoplane fighter in 1915—probably the most remarkable example of prescience in the entire history of aviation.

This Article First Appeared in FLYING Magazine

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