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Authors --> Ken Blackburn
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about Ken Blackburn
Ken Blackburn is an aerospace engineer and the Guinness World Record holder for paper airplane time aloft (27.60 seconds). He works for Jacobs Engineering (Sverdrup division) at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida, performing research on small, unmanned air vehicles.
books by Ken Blackburn:
jacket image for Kids' Paper Airplane Book
jacket image for Pocket Flyers Paper Airplane Book
jacket image for The World Record Paper Airplane Book
jacket image for 365 Tiny Paper Airplanes Page-A-Day Calendar 2009
Instructions for the Basic Dart paper airplane
This is probably the most common type of paper airplane. It’s simple, quick to fold, and flies fast and far. You’ve likely seen or even tried many variations of this model. Wingtip fins and up elevator are important to maintain level flight. You may also want to add a couple of pieces of tape or a paper clip to the nose for extra stability.
Click here to download instructions.

FLIGHT ADJUSTMENTS
+ If your plane dives: Bend the elevators up a little or throw
the plane a little faster.
+ If your plane climbs, slows, then dives: Bend the elevators down a little or throw the plane a little slower.
+ If your plane veers right, bend the rudder a little to the left.
+ If your plane veers left, bend the rudder a little to the right.

BEST-BET THROW
Hold the fuselage toward the front of the plane between your thumb and forefinger. For shorter flights, hold the plane in front of your shoulder and give it a gentle, level push forward. For longer flights, hold the plane above your shoulder and throw it faster and a little upward.