English

Drag parachute opens as Space Shuttle Atlantis touches down.

Alternative forms

• drag chute

Noun

drag parachute ‎(plural drag parachutes)

1. (aeronautics, motor racing) A parachute deployed behind an aircraft, space shuttle, or motor vehicle as a braking device.
   • 1962 July 27, "Jet-Powered Dragster," Spokane Daily Chronicle, p. 12 (retrieved 13 Nov 2015):

     The jet dragster has been clocked at 232.24 miles per hour. . . . The car is stopped by a drag parachute.

   • 1992 May 17, "Shuttle Uses Parachute to Chalk Up Another First," New York Times (retrieved 13 Nov 2015):

     As planned, within seconds of touching down, the space craft released a 40-foot-wide drag parachute to help slow it down.

   • 2009 Sept. 8, "Retired RAF pilot saves bomber from air show disaster," Telegraph (UK) (retrieved 13 Nov 2015):

     The aircraft is designed to use a drag parachute as a brake, but Mr Prothero didn't have time to deploy it.

See also

• drogue parachute