What speed does a plane take off at?
I’m very fortunate that I can sit at my desk and look out the window (instead of actually doing work) and watch airliners setting up to land at San Francisco International Airport. They are easy to watch at this point in their flight because they are closer to the ground, and are flying a lot slower than they did earlier in the flight. Some of the big airliners like the 747 or 777 seem like they are just hanging there, and it sure looks like they are going too slow to remain airborne. Of the different flight regimes airplanes fly in, the one they all have in common is take-off and landing. Not all airplanes go fast, and not all go high, but they all at some point have to go slow and come down to the ground. No matter how long an airplane can stay in the air, they all have to start and end their day on the Tarmac at zero speed. So, no matter what the mission or objective an airplane has, low-speed characteristics will always need to be addressed. Of course, low-speed is a relative term.
