A cockpit fairing or "pod" with a windshield on aP&M GT450ultralight trikeSpats on aCessna Skylane 182TAn aircraft wheel fairing, commonly called awheel pant orspat or, by some manufacturers, aspeed fairing
Also called a "ventral fairing", it is located on the underside of thefuselage between the mainwings. It can also cover additional cargo storage or fuel tanks.[3]
Fin and rudder tip fairings reduce drag at low angles of attack but also reduce the stall angle, so the fairing of control surface tips depends on the application.[5]
Fillets
Fillets smooth the airflow at the junction between two components, such as the fuselage and wing.
Landing gear fairings reduce drag at these junctions.[6]
Flap track fairings
Fairings are needed to enclose theflap operating mechanism when the flap is up. They open up as the flap comes down and may also pivot to allow the necessary sideways movement of the extending mechanism which occurs on swept-wing installations.[7]
Wing roots are often faired to reduce interference drag between the wing and the fuselage. On the top and bottom of the wing, this consists of small rounded edges to reduce surface and friction drag. At the leading and trailing edge it consists of much larger taper and smooths out the pressure differences: high pressure at the leading and trailing edge, low pressure on top of the wing and around the fuselage.[10]
Wing tips are often formed as complex shapes to reduce vortex generation and so also drag, especially at low speed.[11]
Wheels on fixed gear aircraft
Wheel fairings are often called "wheel pants", "speed fairings" in North America or "wheelspats" or "trousers", in the United Kingdom, the latter enclosing both the wheel and landing gear leg. These fairings are a trade-off: they increase the frontal and surface area but provide a smooth surface and a faired nose and tail for laminar flow, in an attempt to reduce the turbulence created by the round wheel and its associated gear legs and brakes. They also serve the important function of preventing mud and stones from being thrown upwards against the wings or fuselage, or into the propeller on a pusher aircraft.[2][12][13]
^Molland, Anthony F. and Turnock, Stephen R.:"Marine Rudders and Control Surfaces: Principles, Data, Design and Applications" 1st Edition, section 5.3.2.11. Butterworth-Heineman, 2007.ISBN978-0-75-066944-3
