The controls

The pilot sits at the front of the plane in the cockpit. There are hundreds of switches, levers and dials to operate the ailerons, flaps, elevators, landing gear, engines and other parts of the plane. The pilot also uses a radio to talk to other aircraft and controllers on the ground. This means that they know when to take-off and land, and where to fly, without hitting any other planes.

The pilot controls the airplane by using either a control wheel or a control stick. This allows them to move the elevators on the tail and the ailerons on the wings, which in turn move the plane around the sky. The elevators move by pulling back and pushing forward on these controls. Pulling back makes the plane go up, pushing forward makes the plane go down. When the pilot moves the controls to the left or to the right, the ailerons on each wing go up or down, moving the plane left or right.

On the floor of the cockpit are pedals that operate the brakes (flaps) and the rudder. When the pilot pushes the right pedal, the rudder turns to the right. It turns left when the left pedal is pushed.

Among the many dials are the speedometer and the altimeter. The speedometer measures the plane's speed, just like the dial in a car. While cars travel at 50, 60 and 70 km/h, planes are more likely to travel at 500, 600 and 700 km/h, so the speedometer goes quite a bit higher! The altimeter is also very important, measuring the plane's altitude - how high it is. Because planes fly through clouds and fog, and at night, the pilot can't always see how far from the ground the plane is. In these conditions, the radar is also important. This allows the pilot to see if there are any other planes nearby, and also to find exactly where airports are.