How to make a paper airplane glider
Paper Airplane Glider (Paper Glider): try all 8 steps in the 3D player. Turn and replay every move. Print the complete diagram sheet or save it as PDF.
An Origami Tutor paper glider with a blunt nose and broad, straight-tipped wings. Thrown gently, it floats slowly across the room instead of darting.
- You need
- One sheet of letter paper (A4 works too). No glue or scissors.
- Start
- Lay a sheet of letter paper in front of you, short edge at the top.
- Tips
- Throw it softly and level: a hard throw makes a glider climb and stall.
- If it dives, bend the back edges of both wings up a little; if it stalls, flatten them.
Your model is ready
Hold the body under the wings and let the glider go with a slow, gentle push.
Step-by-step diagrams
- 1
Crease the middle
Fold the paper in half from left to right, crease it, and open it again.
- 2
Fold the left corner in
Fold the top left corner down so the top edge lies along the center crease.
- 3
Fold the right corner in
Fold the top right corner the same way. The top is now a point.
- 4
Blunt the nose
Fold the point straight down, so its tip rests just above the bottom of the corner folds. The top is now a flat nose about four inches wide.
- 5
Fold in half
Fold the plane in half along the center crease, with the folds you made on the outside.
- 6
Fold the first wing down
Fold the top wing down along a line an inch from the body's fold and parallel to it.
- 7
Fold the second wing behind
Fold the other wing back along the same line, so it matches the first.
- 8
Open both wings
Spread the broad wings along their creases, leaving both tips a little above the roots. Keep the two sides even. Then turn the plane upright, keel below.
- ✓
Finish
Hold the body under the wings and let the glider go with a slow, gentle push.
Fold next
Paper airplane ↗
The classic dart: a sheet of letter paper, a sharp nose and two wings, ready to fly across the room.
Easy paper airplane ↗
An Origami Tutor paper airplane with the fewest folds: two corners, one fold in half and two wings. A good first plane for kids, with broad wings that glide gently.
Distance dart ↗
An Origami Tutor distance dart: a slim dart whose point is folded down to lock the nose folds, so the weight sits up front and the nose stays shut on a hard, long throw.
Delta wing plane ↗
An Origami Tutor delta-wing paper airplane, also called an arrow or stealth plane: a sharp nose and two wide triangular wings over a shallow keel. It flies fast and steady.