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The Wind Rises: A contextual review of a Miyazaki masterpiece

The Plane

The Mitsubishi A6M Zero was one of the many exceptional pieces of engineering to come out of WWII's military-industrial boom. Utilizing several ingenious design details, the Zero fighter superseded most of the design requirement's that Japan's Navy asked for when commissioning the plane. Original elements such as flush rivets, aileron mechanics, and wing design helped to reduce drag and enhance maneuverability, allowing the Zero to stand up for itself in the most intense dogfights.

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Ailerons and how they function to maneuver the plane. The Aileron is the fin at the back of the plane's wings. These fins differentiate from the plane of the wing both up and down, acting like the oars on a kayak to lift or depress the air flowing over the wings. This produces the movement of the plane known as awe, which is the mechanic by which the airplane rotates along its longest axis and thereby turning the plane left and right. Strong air pressure, such as when the plane is attempting to turn very sharply, causes extreme stress on the aileron itself and the components needed to operate it. It is thereby necessary to strongly reinforce or creatively design those components to mitigate this stress and maintain structural and operational integrity while the plane maneuvers through the sky. Earlier iterations of Jiro's design indicated that the stresses exerted on the ailerons would cause them to fail. This failure introduced the necessity for a more effective design, leading to one of several of Jiro's examples of engineering brilliance.
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Ailerons Ailerons and how they function to maneuver the plane. The Aileron is the fin at the back of the plane's wings. These fins differentiate from the plane of the wing both up and down, acting like the oars on a kayak to lift or depress the air flowing over the wings. This produces the movement of the plane known as awe, which is the mechanic by which the airplane rotates along its longest axis and thereby turning the plane left and right. Strong air pressure, such as when the plane is attempting to turn very sharply, causes extreme stress on the aileron itself and the components needed to operate it. It is thereby necessary to strongly reinforce or creatively design those components to mitigate this stress and maintain structural and operational integrity while the plane maneuvers through the sky. Earlier iterations of Jiro's design indicated that the stresses exerted on the ailerons would cause them to fail. This failure introduced the necessity for a more effective design, leading to one of several of Jiro's examples of engineering brilliance.
A6M Zero Flight Test