Dragon Flight

 

The physics of dragon flight is a very interesting topic. There are a number of problems with the notion of such large creatures taking flight, with one being the amount of sustainable power required to maintain flight. Some sample lists of power requirements can be found here but the basic idea still remains that even without a rider a dragon would not be able to sustain itself. For example, a common horse can barely sustain a power of a horsepower (0.745 kW).

Another issue is the strength of the muscle associated with the wings. Such issues are not applicable to airplanes because the material used is quite strong and designed for large loads. However, muscles isn't very strong compared to it's mass. To determine the strength needed in the wing, we simply check the torque imposed by flight divided by the distance between the wing joint and the wing tendon. Given a torque of 50000 ft-lb and muscle strength of 50 psi, we see that the area of the wing needed must be about 1000 square inches. Given the general size and shape of the dragon, this does not seem reasonable.