Editing Flap (aeronautics) (section)

=== Flaps during landing ===
[[File:Airplane Flaps.jpg|thumb|Flaps during ground roll after landing, with spoilers up, increasing drag.]]
[[File:T-6 G Musee du Bourget P1020147.JPG|thumb|North American T-6 trainer, showing its split flaps]]
Flaps may be fully extended for [[landing]] to give the aircraft a lower stall speed so the approach to landing can be flown more slowly, which also allows the aircraft to land in a shorter distance. The higher drag and lower stalling speed associated with fully extended flaps allow a steeper and slower approach to the landing site, but imposes handling difficulties in aircraft with very low [[wing loading]] (i.e. having little weight and a large wing area). Winds across the line of flight, known as ''crosswinds'', cause the windward side of the aircraft to generate more lift and drag, causing the aircraft to [[Aircraft principal axes|roll, yaw and pitch]] off its intended flight path, and as a result many light aircraft land with reduced flap settings in crosswinds. Furthermore, once the aircraft is on the ground, the flaps may decrease the effectiveness of the brakes since the wing is still generating lift and preventing the entire weight of the aircraft from resting on the tires, thus increasing stopping distance, particularly in wet or icy conditions. Usually, the pilot will raise the flaps as soon as possible to prevent this from occurring.<ref name="cessna-172" />