Enter the speed of the aircraft and the angle of flight into the calculator to determine the rate of climb.

Rate of Climb Formula

The following formula is used to calculate the rate of climb. 

ROC = V * sin (fa)
  • Where ROC is the rate of climb of the aircraft
  • v is the velocity of the aircraft
  • fa is the flight angle relative to the ground

To calculate the rate of climb, multiply the velocity of the aircraft by the sine of the flight angle.

The units of the rate of climb will be the same as those for the velocity. So if velocity is in m/s, the rate of climb will be m/s.

What is a rate of climb?

Definition:

A rate of climb is a measure of the total distance per unit time of the vertical component of an aircraft’s movement. In other words, how quickly the aircraft is rising off the ground.

How to calculate rate of climb?

Example Problem:

The following example problem outlines how to calculate a rate of climb.

First, determine the velocity of the aircraft. In this example, the plane is traveling at a speed of 300 m/s.

Next, determine the flight angle. This plane in particular has a flight angle of 15 degrees.

Finally, calculate the rate of climb using the formula above:

ROC = V * sin (fa)

ROC = 300 * sin (15deg)

ROC = 77.645 m/s