The higher-pressure air below a wing spills up over the wing tip into the area of lower-pressure air above. ... These wing tip vortices create a form of pressure drag called vortex drag. Vortices reduce the air pressure along the entire rear edge of the wing, which increases the pressure drag on the airplane.

Are wingtip vortices induced drag?

Wingtip vortices are circular patterns of rotating air left behind a wing as it generates lift. One wingtip vortex trails from the tip of each wing. ... Wingtip vortices are associated with induced drag, the imparting of downwash, and are a fundamental consequence of three-dimensional lift generation.

How do wingtip vortices move?

Wingtip Vortices: Spinning Air And Adding Drag

High-pressure air from the bottom of your wing escapes around the wingtip, moving up towards the lower pressure area on the top of the wing. This movement creates a vortex or tunnel of air, rotating inwards behind the wing.