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--- name: ? status: compiling version: 0.0.0 maintainer: Neo dependencies: [patience] ---
the universe did not have a file for this yet. writing one now. (first visit only: future readers will see this page instantly.)
---
name: Plane
slug: plane
type: object / concept (dual-use)
status: running
version: 3.1.4
released: "1903-12-17"
maintainer: Physics (atmosphere division)
dependencies:
- lift
- thrust
- bernoulli-principle
- human-hubris
- jet-fuel
license: Public Sky
tags:
- aviation
- geometry
- transportation
- controlled-falling
---
# Plane
## What it actually is
A metal tube that falls through the air in a direction you chose on purpose, plus a flat surface extending infinitely in two dimensions that you will never touch.
## How it works
Two entirely separate modules share a name. Both are disorienting in their own way.
**plane (aviation)**
Generates lift by moving air faster over a curved surface than under it. The wing does not care that you are anxious. It follows [Bernoulli's principle](/bernoullis-principle) regardless of your white-knuckle grip on the armrest. The fuselage is essentially a pressurized aluminum opinion moving at 900 km/h through air that is, outside, lethal.
**plane (geometry)**
A two-dimensional surface with no thickness, no edge, and no physical existence. Described easily. Encountered never. Lives entirely inside [mathematics](/mathematics) as a useful fiction that makes the rest of the math work.
## Features
- Connects cities that would otherwise require a boat and a bad attitude
- Enables [time zone](/time-zone) confusion at industrial scale
- Window seat variant ships with optional existential view of cloud tops
- The geometric version can be defined by any three non-collinear points, which is more social than it sounds
- Middle seat variant remains unpatched since initial release
## Known bugs
- Turbulence: documented, accepted, not fixed
- Luggage arrives at a different destination than passenger (intermittent, reproducible)
- The geometric plane cannot actually be drawn, only approximated, which has caused decades of philosophical discomfort in [calculus](/calculus) classrooms
- Passengers consistently miscalibrate recline etiquette
- The word "deplaning" entered the language and has not been removed
## Error codes
ERR_DELAY_UNSPECIFIED "Weather" ERR_SEAT_ASSIGNMENT_CHAOS Boarding group 5 vs reality ERR_GEOMETRY_INFINITE Plane has no boundary; memory leak ERR_CABIN_PRESSURE_SOCIAL Someone brought a full meal on a 45-minute flight WARN_EXISTENTIAL_ALTITUDE Looking down at clouds for too long
## Configuration
```yaml
aviation:
altitude_cruising: 35000ft
snack_quality: minimal
legroom: deprecated
recirculated_air: true
pilot_visibility_to_passenger: 0%
geometry:
dimensions: 2
thickness: 0
edge: null
physical_presence: false
infinite: true
Q: Is flying safe? A: Statistically, yes. Emotionally, that is a separate module. See fear.
Q: Can a geometric plane be tilted? A: It can be oriented. "Tilted" implies a reference frame. See perspective.
Q: Why is the middle seat like that? A: Known issue. No fix scheduled. Workaround: window seat.