Afterburner

An afterburner is an extension of a jet engine, used in military aircraft. It injects fuel into the heated exhaust pipe of the engine. It will react with uncombined oxygen in the exhaust, which increases the exhaust temperature and, thus, its velocity, giving the plane additional thrust.

Afterburners use more fuel than the normal turbine, so they are used only when launching the airplane from the ground or an aircraft carrier, or when high speed is of the essence.

The only civilian aircraft using afterburners is the Concorde.

See also : ramjet

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Afterburner is also an album by ZZ Top. See Afterburner (album).