So basically, what gives a plane lift is how its wings cut through the air. The wings are tilted such that as they move forward in the air, it pushes the air down, and thus creates an equal force upwards. You see the opposite when a plane goes to land– the wings tilt up to push the air up and itself down, thus putting more pressure on the wheels to allow it to stop.

The moral, then, is that the plane needs some wind in its face to fly. Normally it creates it’s own wind by jetting forward. But if there’s no forward motion, then there’s no cutting the air, no equal and opposite force, and thus no flight.

Now, let’s see if I’m right.