What Are the Chief Uses of Airplanes?
Airplanes are mainly used for travelng and for the transportation of commodities, aid and equipment across long distances. Traveling and transporting cargo using an airplane is the fastest and, at times, the only means to reach a particular destination.
Apart from being used for travel and for ferrying cargo, airplanes are also used for other applications. General uses of airplanes include air medical transportation, weather observation, flight training, crop dusting, firefighting, aerial photography and surveying. Airplanes are also used for entertainment like jet fighter exhibitions, wing walkers and for carrying parachutists.
Airplanes also plays are huge role in the military. Fighter planes are used for aerial combats and to destroy enemy aircraft. The function of the ground attack airplanes on the other hand are to disable and destroy Earthbound targets. Bombers are used against strategic targets, such as airfields, oil refineries and factories. Other military uses of airplanes include surveillance, reconnaissance, and military personnel and equipment transport.
In times of disaster, military aircraft is also used for search-and-rescue operations. Search and rescue operation is considered as a “multi-hazard” discipline, and it is the primary response in disasters like earthquakes, hurricanes, flood, HAZMAT releases and terrorist activities. The United States Air Force takes care of inland operations, while the U.S.Coast Guard takes the lead in maritime search and rescue.
