According to the operating handbook, the An-2 has no stall speed. [Leonardo Correa Luna]
Key Takeaways:
The lowest airspeed (stall speed) for most fixed-wing aircraft is fundamentally determined by its wing loading (weight/wing area) and the wing's maximum lift coefficient, which defines the minimum dynamic pressure required for flight.
Claims of impossibly low or non-existent stall speeds, such as those for the Antonov An-2, are often fallacies based on misinterpretations of actual flight characteristics.
These misconceptions primarily arise from unreliable airspeed indicators at very low speeds, aircraft designs that limit elevator authority from achieving a true wing stall, and confusion between airspeed and ground speed.
The lowest airspeed at which an ordinary fixed-wing airplane can fly is almost entirely determined by two numbers.
One of them is the wing loading, that is, the airplane’s weight divided by its wing area. The other is the maximum lift coefficient of the wing, which coincides with its stalling angle of attack.
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Peter Garrison taught himself to use a slide rule and tin snips, built an airplane in his backyard, and flew it to Japan. He began contributing to FLYING in 1968, and he continues to share his columns, ""Technicalities"" and ""Aftermath,"" with FLYING readers.
