GPS will give you groundspeed, not airspeed. And since you don't get lift from g... | Hacker News

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jwr on May 28, 2011 | parent | context | favorite | on: Report on Air France 447 crash deepens mystery

GPS will give you groundspeed, not airspeed. And since you don't get lift from groundspeed, it isn't as relevant to keeping the airplane flying.

rationalbeats on May 28, 2011 | [–]

Example of a Cessna flying backwards lift generated by headwind.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u2tiaWPNamE

rorrr on May 28, 2011 | [–]

But it can be used to precisely determine the altitude, which is what really matters if you're about to crash or go too high and stall.

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