How much force does it take to lift a jumbo jet? An airliner wing may produce an average pressure difference of about 70 grams per square centimeter (a pound per square inch)--about the same pressure difference you can produce while drawing a liquid up a long straw. That may not seem like much, but over the entire wing it adds up. The wings of a Boeing 747 can lift more than 400,000 kilograms (880,000 pounds)--enough to support the fully loaded airplane.
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