Aircraft Vehicle

- A lifting body is the opposite of a flying wing. In this configuration the aircraft body is shaped to produce lift. If there are any wings, they are too small to provide significant lift and are used only for stability and control. Lifting bodies are not efficient: they suffer from high drag, and must also travel at high speed to generate enough lift to fly. Many of the research prototypes, such as the Martin-Marietta X-24, which led up to the Space Shuttle were lifting bodies (though the shuttle itself is not), and some supersonic missiles obtain lift from the airflow over a tubular body. The flat bodies of recent jet fighters also produce lift, as in the F-14 Tomcat's "pancake".
- Powered lift types rely on engine-derived lift for vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL). Most types transition to fixed-wing lift for horizontal flight. Classes of powered lift types include VTOL jet aircraft (such as the Harrier jump-jet) and tiltrotors (such as the V-22 Osprey), among others. A few examples rely entirely on engine thrust to provide lift throughout the whole flight. There are few practical applications. Experimental designs have been built for personal fan-lift hover platforms and jetpacks or for VTOL research (for example the flying bedstead).
- The Flettner airplane has a spinning cylinder in place of a wing, relying on the Magnus effect to create lift.
- The FanWing is a recent innovation with some similarities to the Flettner rotor design. It uses a fixed wing with a cylindrical fan mounted spanwise just above . As the fan spins, it creates an airflow backwards over the upper surface of the wing, creating lift. The FanWing is (2010) in development in the United Kingdom.