First Flights with Neil Armstrong

S03E13 Propellers - Wings With A Twist

The Wright brothers discovered that a propeller functions like a rotating wing, and by adding a twist, they made it more functional. By the mid-1930s, advancements in variable pitch and research from NACA transformed propeller technology. As the jet age emerged, propellers became less popular for larger planes. However, designers later recognized that a high-speed turboprop equipped with a modern propeller could outperform even the most efficient jetliners.