Whitewings Paper Airplanes
Advanced cut-and-paste style paper airplanes that have excellent aerodynamic performance.
Fold'N Fly (this website) was launched in 2012 and quickly became the #1 resource for folded paper airplanes. These are the type that you make by folding a single sheet of paper into different designs. It is a special type of origami. Did you know that there is a totally different style of paper airplane construction called cut-and-paste? With this style of paper gliders, you start with several sheets of heavy cardstock paper with the airplane parts printed as outlines. You then cut out the pieces and carefully glue them together to make an excellent paper airplane. Because you are not limited to what you can create by folding a single piece of paper, you can construct much more advanced and high-performance designs that can aerodynamically glide through the air for a long time.
Whitewings was a very popular brand of the cut-and-paste style of paper airplane. At its height of popularity in the 1980s and 90s, it appeared in toy stores, hobby shops and museum gift shops all over the world, selling millions of copies. You will be truly amazed by the performance of these paper airplanes!
Crowdfunding Project
Whitewings will be relaunching in the US with a limited run Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign that you can be a part of.
Whitewings has been commercially unavailable for 20 years. Fortunately, Fold'N Fly has acquired the whitewings.com website and has obtained the rights to manufacture the kits again! If we get enough support, we will faithfully re-create the Original Series from 1980 that included the first 15 advanced paper airplanes in the Whitewings series.
By helping to support our project you can get one of these re-released kits of 15 excellent paper airplanes mailed straight to your door!
Support Our ProjectWhitewings Gliders
Whitewings paper gliders come in a wide variety of unique styles. Some soar swiftly and cover long distances, while others glide softly to the ground like a feather. The joy comes from experimenting with each one, fine-tuning how they fly, and discovering their quirks. Part of the fun is figuring out which one is your favorite.
Real-Life Classics: Some of the designs pay homage to famous aircraft. For example, you could build a WWII era "P-51 Mustang" or a more modern "F-15 Eagle". You could also try the "Spirit of St. Louis", a glider honoring Charles Lindbergh’s historic plane. These replica airplanes look amazing and will spark conversations about the real aircraft that inspired them.
High-Speed Racers: Whitewings features many “racer” models with aerodynamic shapes that are optimized for performance. These are the planes that you’ll want to take to the park on a calm day and see just how far they can go.
Creative & Futuristic Designs: Whitewings kits always had a few surprises! You may find a seaplane-style Flying Boat, an ultra-modern Tailless Plane or a throwback Bi-Plane. These creative models showcase out-of-the-box thinking. Building them will make you feel like an experimental aircraft engineer!
Cut-and-Paste Style
Because the designer has much more flexibility when they aren't limited to simple folds, more complex and accurate designs can be created. Because everything is glued with heavy cardstock construction, you can make very precise airfoil shapes that are rigid enough to hold their shape well during flight. This is a big advantage over regular paper airplanes that are flexible and can unfold and flutter during flight.
Some designs are optimized for low aerodynamic drag and fast flying. Other designs are intended to faithfully reproduce a popular historical airplane, and allow them to fly well. With fewer design limitations, anything is possible!
When you get your cut-and-glue paper airplane kit, here is an overview of the construction process:
Cut Out The Parts
Use a scissors or hobby knife to carefully cut out all the pieces. Start with a sharp blade and work carefully. Take your time with the fine details to ensure accurate cuts.
Bend the Tabs and Wing Angle
Use a ruler to help make a straight bend along the dotted lines. The tabs will be used for gluing on the other pieces. The wing will also be bent to have a slight dihedral angle.
Gluing
Glue the pieces together according to the directions. The glue will add strength to the model so it will survive crashes and aerodynamic stresses during flight. We recommend a quick drying paper glue. Glue stick works nicely.
Trimming
Making small adjustments to the airplane is called "Trimming". This helps optimize the paper airplane for the best performance. Bend the wings so they have a slightly curved airfoil shape, called a "camber". Then adjust the center of mass by adding small bits of paper or tape to get the glider to balance at just the right spot for the best flights.
Flying
Take your newly crafted model out to the park and give it some test flights. You will be truly amazed at how well these perform. You can easily get 30 second flights that travel the length of a football field or further! If you get your airplane into a thermal (rising warm air), you could get your paper airplane to climb and stay aloft for several minutes!
Whitewings Airplanes
Over the 2 decades that Whitewings was manufactured, the company released dozens of different kits containing hundreds of different paper airplane designs. Here is a brief overview of the most popular items.
Core Whitewings Series
Between 1980 and 1995 Whitewings released 98 unique paper airplanes spread across 8 volumes. These included "racer" models that were designed for high performance distance gliding at speed. There were also many "profile" models which are flying paper replicas of real historical aircraft. The series also included several creative, experimental designs featuring futuristic or unusual ideas.
Each set inluded printed templates to construct 15 different paper airplanes. The paper was a special type of card-stock manufactured to optimize its strength-to-weight ratio. The kits also included a detailed instruction booklet and a rubber band powered catapult.
Balsa Wood Series
In parallel with the all-paper Core Series, Whitewings also released a series of kits that included a balsa wood fuselage to which the remaining paper pieces were attached. The wood body made construction quicker (fewer pieces to glue), more reliable (guaranteeing a perfectly straight and aligned airplane) and stronger (the wood improved durability).
These sets came with the pre-cut balsa wood and paper pieces, as well as a detailed instruction manual and a rubber band catapult. They contained between 3 to 8 models per set and a few were printed in full color.
Designer Profile
Dr. Yasuaki Ninomiya (1926–2023) is the visionary inventor of Whitewings and a pioneer of the paper airplane hobby. He created his first paper airplane at age 6, which sparked a lifelong interest in the hobby and business of designing and building paper gliders. He had a very prolific career, releasing more than 1500 different designs in various formats including the Whitewings kits, dozens of books and a 49 year run in the Kodomo no Kagaku (Children's Science) monthly magazine.
Here are some key accomplishments of Dr. Ninomiya:
- He won the 1st International Paper Airplane Contest in 1967 in two categories: Duration Flight and Distance Flight.
- Through a partnership with AG Corporation he launched the Whitewings brand of paper airplane kits, starting in 1980.
- He co-founded the Japan Paper Airplane Association in 1984 and served as the chairman.
- He served as a judge in the 2nd Great International Paper Airplane Contest (1985)
- Helped organize the annual Japan Cup Paper Airplane Championship.
- He received the prestigious Paul Tissandier Diploma from the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale in 2001 for his contributions to aviation through paper aircraft.
- He held a private plane operator's license and flew his Cessna 182 whenever he had a chance.
- His paper airplane collection has been donated to the Dendai City Science Museum and is now on permanent display.
Company Profile
The company behind Whitewings played a crucial role in popularizing the Whitewings brand. AG Corporation (based in Osaka, Japan) handled manufacturing and distribution, while AG Industries (Redmond, Washington) took on US and international marketing. From the outset, the partnership ensured that Whitewings kits were published in both English and Japanese. This forward looking international collaboration, unusual for hobby products at the time, opened the brand to a truly global audience.
During the 1980s and '90s, AG flourished thanks to Whitewings' popularity. Committed to producing high quality flying toys, the company forged partnerships with Eddie Bauer, the Discovery Channel, and the Smithsonian, extending Whitewings well beyond the traditional hobby shop.
By the late '90s, video games and electronic toys were stealing the spotlight, and detailed paper airplane kits became more of a specialty item. Even so, Whitewings retained a dedicated following. AG Industries released its final batch of new designs in the early 2000s, maintaining the brand's reputation for thoughtful engineering and timeless appeal.
Build Your Own
If you are interested in building your own Whitewings style paper airplane, here are some excellent resources to get you started.
Kickstarter
Support our Kickstarter project and help us relaunch the Whitewings brand. By supporting our crowdfunded project you can help bring these beloved kits back to life. As a reward you will get your very own Whitewings kit containing 15 different excellent paper airplanes that you can build and fly at home.
Amelia Earhart's Lockheed Vega 5B
Here on Fold'N Fly we have a cut-and-paste style of paper airplane that you can download, print and build at home. It was modeled after Amelia Earhart's famous Vega 5B airplane that she used to become the first woman to fly across the Atlantic ocean.
Whitewings.com
The Whitewings website has been relaunched with detailed information about the history of the airplanes, including photos and information about every kit and airplane that they released. Check it out if you want to learn more about this brand of paper airplanes.
Conclusion
For those who grew up in the '80s or '90s, Whitewings ignites instant nostalgia. Whitewings gained a reputation as the best-flying paper airplanes in the world, and for good reason. Its performance was unparalleled. Whether you grew up with Whitewings or are just discovering them today, these elegant gliders prove that a pinch of patience and a spark of imagination can still turn the sky into a playground. Whitewings invites every generation to slow down, feel the breeze, and watch their paper airplanes glide through the wind.
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