By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Travel Radar - Aviation NewsTravel Radar - Aviation News
  • Breaking News
  • Aviation
    • Aircraft
    • Airlines
    • Airshow & Events
    • Careers
    • Manufacturing
  • Travel
    • Airports
    • Points & Loyalty
    • Technology
    • Trip Reviews
  • Newsletters
Reading: Why Do Some Airplanes Have Winglets?
Share
Sign In
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
Font ResizerAa
Travel Radar - Aviation NewsTravel Radar - Aviation News
  • Breaking News
  • Aviation
    • Aircraft
    • Airlines
    • Airshow & Events
    • Careers
    • Manufacturing
  • Travel
    • Airports
    • Points & Loyalty
    • Technology
    • Trip Reviews
  • Newsletters
Signin Sign In
Follow US
Copyright © Travel Radar Media Ltd. 2025 | All Rights Reserved
Travel Radar - Aviation News > News > Why Do Some Airplanes Have Winglets?

Why Do Some Airplanes Have Winglets?

Sohail Sawlani
Last updated: 6 June 2021 17:03
By Sohail Sawlani
3 Min Read
Share
Emirates A380 moments before landing
SHARE

You peer out of your aeroplane window and study the design of the wing in detail. You notice a little “fold” at the tips of the wing and you wonder- what are they and what do they do? Through this article, you will learn about winglets and how they work.

Summary
What are Winglets?Which was the First Aircraft with Winglets?Airbus A350Boeing 737MAXBoeing 777X
737 MAX-8
A Boeing 737MAX with sharklets © Boeing

What are Winglets?

Winglets are short bends at the edge of airplane wings. They were first created in 1897 by Frederick W. Lanchester and were designed to improve the efficiency of an aircraft by reducing drag from the tip vortex energy without winglets. Today, many aircrafts have such winglets including the Airbus A350 and Boeing 737MAX.

A Ryanair plane takes off
A Ryanair Airplane With Winglets Takes Off

Which was the First Aircraft with Winglets?

The Bombardier CRJ-100 was the first aircraft to have winglets in 1992. The CRJ-100 was the first member of the CRJ family, having 50 seats onboard. The aircraft entered service with Lufthansa CityLine on 19 October 1992. This was then followed by A330 and A340 in 1993/1994.

Now that we know what are winglets and how they came about, let us take a look at some examples of aircraft with winglets.

Airbus A350

The winglets that the A350 have are nothing out of the ordinary: all wingtips, like the ones the A350 have, help to reduce drag.

A Lufthansa A350 moments before landing
A Lufthansa A350 taking off

Boeing 737MAX

The Boeing 737MAX has a special type of winglet called the “Advanced Technology Winglet”. Normal aircraft winglets are usually on the top of the wing pointing upwards. However, that is not the case for the 737MAX for Boeing added a second winglet which is on top of the regular winglet, at the bottom surface of the wing. This further reduces the drag, increasing efficiency, and thus, resulting in fewer costs for the airline, which attracts them to purchase the aircraft.

737max
A Boeing 737MAX with Sharklets | Source: Boeing

Boeing 777X

The Boeing 777X is Boeing’s newest aircraft. It has a typical winglet except for one thing- it folds. Due to the long wingspan of the Boeing 777X, Boeing decided to make the Boeing 777X’s winglet foldable. Its winglets will fold during flight, unfold during taxi and fold back again at the gate.

Did you learn about winglets through this article? Comment below.

You Might Also Like

What does the future hold for the inflight magazine?
Premium Class Travel Outpaces Economy: What IATA’s New Report Reveals
UK Citizens Face Uncertainty Over Travelling To Portugal This Summer
Indian airlines plagued by hoax bomb threats
PLAY Airlines Makes it Easier To Check-In For Flights
Share This Article
Facebook Twitter Email Copy Link
What’s your thoughts?
Love0
Sad0
Happy0
Angry0
Sohail Sawlani
BySohail Sawlani
Aviation Reporter - Sohail is an avid aviation enthusiast and having been a previous Editorial Intern, is now an Aviation Reporter with Travel Radar. With a passion for Commercial Aviation and the machines behind the operations, he regularly contributes to the News & Analysis sections at Travel Radar. Outside of TR, he can be found on the Twitter realm as 'Planeopedia', posting about all things aviation!
Previous Article Green Aviation Bengaluru Airport Attains Energy-Neutral Status
Next Article Ormiston Gorge Alice Springs Northern Territory Budget Flights Jonathan Green Australia’s Best Budget Flights In June 2021
Subscribe
Login
Notify of
guest

guest

0 Comments
Oldest
Newest Upvoted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments

Stay Connected

FacebookLike
TwitterFollow
InstagramFollow
YoutubeSubscribe

Trending News

Qatar Airways aircraft with a palm tree in the foreground
Why Don’t Planes Bring Back Gaming with New In-Flight WiFi?
Aviation Travel Travel Radar
American Airlines unveils new Airbus A321XLR © American Airlines
American Airlines Unveils Luxurious Airbus A321XLR
Aircraft Airline Economics Airlines Aviation Travel
IATA streamlined ground operations and digital tools © Thomas Nugent
IATA Unveils 2026 Cargo and Ground Operations Update
Aircraft Airline Economics Aviation Did You Know Technology Travel Travel Radar
San Diego, California skyline
Alaska Airlines adds 13 new routes totalling to their most ever
Airports Aviation Travel
Workshop organised by TRAFFIC with Malaysia’s Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability (NRES) and supported by the Aviation Security Division of Malaysia Airports Holding Berhad (MAHB)
TRAFFIC fights against wildlife trafficking in Malaysian Air Sector
Aviation Travel
//

Travel Radar is the leading digital hub for all things aviation and air-travel. Discover our latest aviation news, aviation data, insight and analysis.

Discover

  • Latest News
  • Subscribe
  • Weekly Digest
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Advertising
  • Media Coverage
  • Press & Events
  • Join Our Team
  • Our Brands

Signup to our Newsletter!

And get the latest aviation news via our weekly news digest!

© Travel Radar Media Ltd. 2015-2025 | ISSN #2635-0696 | Trademark #UK00003579704
wpDiscuz
adbanner
Welcome to the TR Community!

Sign in to your account

Not a member? Sign Up