The parasite drag () is a component of the total aerodynamic drag on an aircraft that is not associated with the generation of lift. It includes form drag, which is related to the shape of the aircraft, and skin friction drag, which arises from the friction of air moving over the surfaces. Minimizing parasite drag is crucial for improving an aircraft’s overall aerodynamic efficiency and fuel economy. The parasite drag can be expressed using the drag equation:
Where:
- is the total parasite drag in N
- is the air density in kg/m3
- is the airspeed of the aircraft in m/s.
- is the reference area (usually the wing area) in m2
- is the coefficient of parasite drag.