The Bird

The birdlike wings give this fast flying paper airplane a lot of stability during flight.

The Bird

The birdlike wings give this fast flying paper airplane a lot of stability during flight.

This is a very reliable distance flier. We've given precise measurements below, but feel free to experiment with the wings.

Hard difficulty Letter & A4 Paper Distance Measurements

Your Rating:

Sign in to rate

Steps

Video Guide

Download & Print

Paper Airplane Folding Instructions

1. Fold the top right corner diagonally down to the other side.

2. Open the paper back up and repeat with the other side.

3. Now fold the top down and line the crease up with the center part of the X shape.

4. Unfold and flatten the paper out.

5. Next, fold the top edge down so it meets the first horizontal crease.

6. Fold the top section down again along the horizontal crease.

7. Fold the top outer edge so it meets the diagonal crease and then repeat with the other side.

8. Fold the top edges along the diagonal lines to create the point of the plane.

9. Next, fold the point down as shown.

10. At the top edge of the plane, measure 1.6cm from the center to the left and right. Then, measure 2.5cm (1 inch) from the bottom center and connect the points.

11. Fold the airplane in half and then fold along those measured lines. Use our printable instructions if you don't want to measure.

12. Measure 3.1cm from the top outer corner and then 3.1cm again from that point. Measure 2.5cm (1 inch) from the bottom of the vertical line and again from that point.

13. Fold along the lines, alternating the direction of each fold to get an accordion shape.

14. Finally, tape the nose of the paper plane together.

Final Paper Airplane Design

Looking head on, adjust the wings until they look symmetrical, then throw it hard at a slight upwards angle to see how fast and far it can go.

Watch a Video Tutorial

Download & Print This Design

Video Instructions

View Printed Instructions

Download & Print This Design

Printable Folding Instructions

These beautiful, easy to follow, paper airplane folding instructions can be downloaded and printed as many times as you want. Simply follow the printed instructions and fold along the indicated lines to make a perfect paper airplane, every time.

Sample Paper Airplane Printable Instructions

Sample Paper Airplane Printable Template

Download & Print

Number of Folds	14
Distance Flown Average Distance Thrown by a 10yr old	46.1 ft / 14 m
Time Aloft Average Time Aloft Thrown by a 10yr old	2.2 sec

Convert to Imperial	Letter Paper
Length The distance from nose to tail	13.8 cm
Wingspan The longest distance from wingtip to wingtip	14 cm
Wing Chord The average length of the wing, from front to back	9.8 cm
Wing Area The area of all wing surfaces	137.8 cm²
Wing Loading The averaged weight carried by the wings	333.8 g/m²

The Wing Loading is how much of the paper airplane's weight is being lifted by each unit area of the wing's surface. In general, an airplane with a lower wing loading will glider better. A standard piece of 75gsm printer paper is used for all of these measurements across the website.

References

• Best Ever Paper Airplanes

Of Interest

• Fold'N Fly Paper Airplane Book

• Motorized Propeller for Paper Airplanes

• Paper Airplane Launchers

• Foam Airplanes

• Balsa Wood Airplanes

These are affiliate links. More info here

Get Your Pilot's License

Printable Folding Templates
Downloadable Games & Activities
Customizable Pilot's License ID Card
Quickly Access Your Favorite Designs
No Ads

Upgrade Now

Join OPAL

This paper airplane can be used to accomplish the challenging tasks in Level 1 of the Original Paper Airplane League. Progressively improve your paper airplane skills and climb the ranks of this online club.