Aeronautics vs. Aviation

Main Difference

The main difference between Aeronautics and Aviation is that the Aeronautics is a science involved with the study, design, and manufacturing of airflight-capable machines and Aviation is a design, development, production, operation and use of aircraft.

• Aeronautics

  Aeronautics is the science or art involved with the study, design, and manufacturing of air flight capable machines, and the techniques of operating aircraft and rockets within the atmosphere. The British Royal Aeronautical Society identifies the aspects of “aeronautical Art, Science and Engineering” and “the profession of Aeronautics (which expression includes Astronautics).” While the term originally referred solely to operating the aircraft, it has since been expanded to include technology, business, and other aspects related to aircraft.

  The term “aviation” is sometimes used interchangeably with aeronautics, although “aeronautics” includes lighter-than-air craft such as airships, and includes ballistic vehicles while “aviation” technically does not.A significant part of aeronautical science is a branch of dynamics called aerodynamics, which deals with the motion of air and the way that it interacts with objects in motion, such as an aircraft.

• Aviation

  Aviation, or air transport, refers to the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. Aircraft includes fixed-wing and rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as lighter-than-air craft such as balloons and airships.

  Aviation began in the 18th century with the development of the hot air balloon, an apparatus capable of atmospheric displacement through buoyancy. Some of the most significant advancements in aviation technology came with the controlled gliding flying of Otto Lilienthal in 1896; then a large step in significance came with the construction of the first powered airplane by the Wright brothers in the early 1900s. Since that time, aviation has been technologically revolutionized by the introduction of the jet which permitted a major form of transport throughout the world.