Airplane Science and Vocabulary (Free Spanish Lessons for Kids)
It’s not a bird, and it’s not Superman—it’s a lesson about airplanes in Spanish!
A lesson about airplanes for kids is some of the best ways to interest them in science and experiments, because it involves physics, aerodynamics, engineering, and a lot of other sciences that can be really interesting for our children in the future.
Combining all this interesting information with Spanish is a great way to practice their fluency and expand their vocabulary.
With this kid’s guide I hope you and your kids learn all about airplanes in Spanish, what they are, how to explain what an airplane is, how they work, what their parts are and a lot of other airplane facts for kids.
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What Is an Airplane?
Have you ever met someone that doesn’t know what an airplane is?
I haven’t!
But it is always good to be prepared, and today we are going to learn everything about airplanes and how to explain what airplanes mean in Spanish.
El avión, or airplane in Spanish, is a vehicle that can travel through the air and has one (or more) motors or propellers and wings.
Now, next time you take un vuelo, or a flight in Spanish, you know how to explain it to someone who doesn’t know about planes.
But how can you explain what airplanes are in Spanish? Let me help you with these examples:
Los aviones son medios de transporte.
Airplanes are one type of transportation.
Los aviones son vehículos que nos permiten volar en el cielo.
Airplanes are vehicles that let us fly in the sky.
Podemos usar los aviones para ir a lugares muy lejanos más rápido.
We can use airplanes to go to far away places faster.
Los aviones usan motores o hélices para volar.
Airplanes use motors or propellers to fly.
How Do Airplanes Work?
Okay, now we know planes are a type of transportation that can fly.
But, how do airplanes work? How is it possible that machines so big and heavy can look like they float in the air? Why does it work?
It is all thanks to a science called aerodynamics, which is the study of how the air travels around objects moving through it and four important flight forces that work on an airplane to make it fly:
- Lift – la sustentación: This force pushes the airplane up to keep it airborne, and it is caused by the airflow around the plane. The most important part of the plane that helps to keep the lift when airplanes fly are the wings.
- Weight – el peso: This is the force that every object has for being on earth. It comes from gravity that pulls down an object. Weight is the opposite force to lift and is necessary to keep the airplanes from floating away and being able to come back down to earth.
- Thrust – el empuje: This is the force that moves something forwards, and in airplanes, it is produced by propellers, motors and turbines.
- Drag – la resistencia: This is the force that slows objects down. Is the direct opposite of the thrust.
If you want to learn more deeply about the forces of flight, this NASA blog might be of your interest!
Let’s learn how to talk about these forces in Spanish!
La sustentación es la fuerza de vuelo que mantiene a los aviones en el aire.
The lift is the force of flight that keeps the airplanes airborne.
El peso es la gravedad que empuja al avión de vuelta a la tierra.
Weight is the gravity that pushes the airplane back to earth.
El empuje es la fuerza que impulsa al avión hacia adelante.
Thrust is the force that moves the airplane forward.
La resistencia es la fuerza que hace más lento al avión.
Drag is the force that makes the plane slower.
Todas estas fuerzas de vuelo hacen que los aviones puedan volar.
All these flight forces make the plane flight.
Las fuerzas de vuelo se estudian en la aerodinámica.
The flight forces are studied by aerodynamics.
Here is a short video on how airplanes fly in Spanish, so you can have a better idea of how all these amazing forces work together.
Parts of an Airplane
We already mentioned the wings and the propellers in the section before, and while they are important when building an airplane, there are a lot of other parts that we need to know about if we want to learn about airplanes in Spanish.
Parts of an Airplane in Spanish
| English | Spanish |
| ailerons | los alerones |
| cabin | la cabina |
| flaps | las solapas |
| fuselage | el fuselaje |
| landing flap | la aleta de aterrizaje |
| navigation lights | las luces de navegación |
| rudder | el timón |
| stabilizers | los estabilizadores |
| tail | la cola |
| turbines | las turbinas |
| undercarriage | el tren de aterrizaje |
| wings | las alas |
Now, let’s learn how to talk about them in Spanish:
El fuselaje es el cuerpo principal del avión.
The fuselage is the body of the airplane.
Las alas permiten que el avión pueda volar por la fuerza de sustentación.
The wings let the airplane fly thanks to the lift force.
Las solapas están en las alas del avión y aumentan la sustentación.
The flaps are on the airplane wings and they increase the lift.
Los alerones permiten que el avión gire.
The ailerons let the airplane turn.
La cola del avión tiene varias partes que permiten controlar la dirección y la altura.
The airplane’s tail has several parts that let it control the direction and height.
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Inside of an Airplane
While the most important parts of the plane are those that let it work, the inside of a plane is also really important!
Simpler airplanes—for just one or two passengers— just have a cabina, or cockpit. And others have a lot of space to transport vehicles or food supplies!
But today, we are going to learn about what you can find inside of a passenger airplane, so you can talk about it in Spanish next time you take a flight.
Inside of an Airplane in Spanish
| English | Spanish |
| aisle seat | el asiento del pasillo |
| bathrooms | los baños |
| business class | la clase ejecutiva |
| cockpit | la cabina del piloto |
| compartments | los compartimentos |
| economy class | la clase económica |
| first class | la primera clase |
| luggage/baggage hold | la bodega de equipaje |
| seats | los asientos |
| windows seat | el asiento de la ventanilla |
Types of Airplanes
We mentioned before that the interior of an airplane changes according to the type of plane it is, so that means that there are different types of airplanes, and each one of those serves a purpose.
For example, the most common airplane we can observe in the sky is an avión de pasajeros, a passenger airplane, like the one we learned about before.
Imagine those planes going to war! They would be so slow and useless. That’s why they built los aviones militares (military planes).
Let’s learn about some different kinds of airplanes in Spanish then!
Types of Airplanes in Spanish
| English | Spanish |
| cargo plane | el avión de carga |
| commercial flight | el avión comercial |
| helicopter | el helicóptero |
| jet | el jet |
| military plane | el avión militar |
| private jet | el jet privado |
| propeller plane | el avión de hélice |
| supersonic plane | el avión supersónico |
Other Useful Words When Talking About Airplanes in Spanish
When we talk about airplanes, we usually talk about other things like what we can carry inside the airplanes, the crew or the airport, because all of that is part of taking a flight to go home, on a trip or on vacations.
For that reason, here are some small vocabulary lists of other topics you may need to talk about when talking about airplanes in Spanish.
People You Can Find Inside Airplanes in Spanish
| English | Spanish |
| captain | el capitán |
| co-pilot | el copiloto |
| crew | la tripulación |
| flight attendant | el auxiliar de vuelo |
| passengers | los pasajeros |
| pilot | el piloto |
Things You Carry on Airplanes in Spanish
| English | Spanish |
| baggage | el equipaje |
| backpack | la mochila |
| briefcase | el maletín |
| carry-on | el equipaje de mano |
| Hand bag | la bolsa de mano/ el bolso de mano |
| pet carriers | los transportadores de mascotas |
Airport Words in Spanish
| English | Spanish |
| airport | el aeropuerto |
| airport terminal | la terminal del aeropuerto |
| control tower | la torre de control |
| hangar | el hangar |
| international airport | el aeropuerto internacional |
| landing track | la pista de aterrizaje |
| nacional airport | el aeropuerto nacional |
| runway | la pista de despegue |
If you want to learn more about aerodynamics for kids, the introductory post by NASA on this topic may be of great interest for you.
For smaller kids, our friend Blippi has a great video on all things related to planes and one where he explores a private plane.
You can also download our worksheets so you can use them with your children to review all the information learned today!
Let Your Spanish Take Off!
If your children are interested in airplanes, they are probably interested in traveling around the world too!
By knowing Spanish, your child will be able to communicate more easily with those around them. Due to its popularity, there’s a strong chance your child will encounter people who speak the language at school, on the playground, or around the community. With even a basic understanding, they can start and carry conversations that enrich their lives.
Honestly, no parent intends for it to happen, but it’s all too easy to get stuck in a rut of choosing books, movies, and television programs that only feature people who look and talk like your family. Learning Spanish opens your child’s eyes to a world beyond their front door. It encourages conversations around diversity, culture, and respecting others. It also opens the door to a rich repository of Spanish music, film, and literature!
By learning Spanish you can interest your children in learning more about the world that surrounds them while practicing their fluency and becoming aware of the rich diversity that our world has!
To try it out for your family, sign your child up for a free trial class with one of our certified, native Spanish-speaking teachers at Homeschool Spanish Academy today! Check out our programs and take a peek at our affordable prices and get started on your new Spanish learning adventure!
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