Paper Airplane Tutorial Review

Reason

I selected a tutorial on paper airplane folding. I have been interested in this subject since I was a young child and one of my great uncles showed me how to make a paper helicopter. I might decide to do a similar tutorial on my website someday.

I used a search engine to find this tutorial and came up with what is called the Trapezium Paper Airplane.

Review

This tutorial begins by stating what the Trapezium paper airplane model can and can not do. It states that this particular paper airplane is best indoors and glides well if thrown gently. It is not stable enough to do much else.

The tutorial then lists in order the specific folds necessary to make the Trapezium model. Accompanying diagrams help the reader see exactly where the folds should be made.

The steps are:

1. Use an A4 (8 1/2" x 11") sheet of paper, and fold diagonally as seen on the diagram.
2. Shows diagram of results of step 1
3. Unfold from step 1, then fold again in half, as shown on diagram.
4. Push in from the points labeled A on the diagram (sides of the paper)
5. Flatten out the resulting form and then fold again on dotted lines shown in the diagram.
6. Fold again from the tip (another diagram)
7. Fold again so that 2 flaps meet in center.
8. Diagram showing results of step 7
9. Tuck in the flaps into pockets created by step 7.
10. Results of step 9 are shown in a diagram.
11. Turn the plane over and fold as shown in diagram.

I found this tutorial useful and entertaining. I learned how to fold paper to make this particular model of airplane. The diagrams were of course the most necessary part of this tutorial since it helps the user visualize and check if the folds are done correctly. I personally would have liked to have seen an animation on the folding process, but that may have been outside the means of the site creator to do so.

Other Links

The site creator apparently has many more paper airplanes on his site. You can find them all at http://www.geocities.com/bgaschultz/mainplan.html.

Here are my personal favorites:

• The classic Dart
• The Helicopter
• The Sabertooth