If humans could fly, how large would their wings need to be to lift off the ground?

Humans are capable of incredible things, yet unfortunately, we cannot fly on our own. But what if we could? What would our wings look like? Humans lack the hollow bones that birds have, which means our wingspan would need to be enormous to lift us off the ground, as reported by Live Science.

In a new study, scientists focused on calculating the actual size our wings would need to be if humans could fly. According to Ty Hendrick, a biology professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, their analysis showed that an average person weighing about 70 kilograms and standing at least 1.5 meters tall would have a wingspan of 6 meters.

Hendrick reached this conclusion using an equation developed by Robert Nudds, a senior lecturer in biological sciences at the University of Manchester. It’s worth noting that Nudds described this equation in a paper back in 2007, which was dedicated to scaling the parameters of bird wings in relation to body mass.

According to Michael Habib, a researcher at the Dinosaur Institute of the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, science indicates that merely having wings is not enough for humans to fly. In fact, other features would also be required in addition to wings.

First of all, it depends on what kind of wings we would have. The classic depiction of an angel shows a flying person with a huge pair of feathered wings protruding from their back. According to Habib, anatomically, this would require a separate shoulder blade and flight muscles encircling the chest and back.

At the same time, scientists believe that bat wings would be much more suitable for humans. In this configuration, the entire arm and hand would stretch out, creating a wingspan of 6 meters. A fleshy membrane wing would cover these limbs. However, for this to work, the rest of our body would need to generate enough energy, which would require strong muscles. On average, birds have between 16% to 18% of their muscle mass dedicated to flight muscles. In some cases, up to 30% of their muscle mass is concentrated in the chest. This is also true for bats, although the mass is distributed across a greater number of muscles. According to Habib, this is what distinguishes their body structure from non-flying animals. Scientists believe that humans would likely have a prominently protruding chest and an incredibly defined back.

Secondly, the type of flying humans would engage in also matters. According to Habib, the reality is that not all flying is the same. In other words, how we fly is determined by our anatomy. There are several types of flight, including:

• flapping;
• gliding;
• hovering;
• soaring.

Scientists note that each of these specializations implies different types of wings. For instance, a bird that flaps its wings during flight has short and sturdy wings; soaring birds have much longer wings. Researchers believe that humans would likely be able to soar.

Thirdly, the takeoff itself is crucial—it’s not so simple with 6-meter wings. According to Hendrick, humans would not be able to actively flap their wings to take off when close to the ground. Researchers believe that humans would likely take off from a position where all four limbs are on the ground. Pterosaurs were among the first vertebrates to develop the ability to fly over 200 million years ago, and they likely walked and took off in a similar manner.