What are air crafts and which are types of aircrafts, you know? Most of us will only answer the common ones – airplanes and helicopters. Well, yes, you are not wrong. Airplanes and helicopters are the most common types of aircrafts we may know. But what you may miss out on are different and several other categories in aircraft that you may not know.

From helicopters to gliders to cargo planes, fighter jets, balloons, and more, there are numerous other aircraft types and categories we must all know. Let’s find and learn all about them today.

What Is The Aircraft?

Any vehicle that is manufactured and made to fly in the air is called an aircraft. While the aeroplane is the most known, familiar, and popular kind of aircraft we know, other vessels that fly through the air also come in this category. All of them have propellers and wings or machinery to run through the air; however, they may vary according to sizes, types, usage, and more.

Classifications Of Aircraft:

Before we get into knowing and studying different types of aircrafts, let us understand how are these aircrafts classified. In most common terms, there are two types of classifications for aircrafts. One is lighter than air aircrafts, known as aerostats, and the other is heavier than air aircrafts, called aerodynes.

Aerostats (Lighter Than Air): Aerostats or lighter than air aircrafts are very more lightweight in weight. These types of light aircraft generally use buoyancy like ships, which helps them float in the air. Low-density gas such as hydrogen, helium, or hot air balloons is used to fill in the aircraft. This low-density gas is lighter than air, hence the name. The most common types of aerostats known to us are hot air balloons and sky lanterns.

Aerodynes (Heavier Than Air): Alternatively, the other aircraft, heavier than air or aerodynes, as we understand, is much higher in weight and size. They push the gas or air downwards, which reaction helps to make aircraft upwards. Since these are dynamic through movements in the air, they are called aerodynes. This dynamic lift through the air can be caused mostly through mechanisms, as you must have already known.