Originally Posted by FallingWithStyle

Ok it's 2017 and yes I saw the mythbusters episode.

What if each wheel of the plane was placed on a non electric treadmill?

That was my original thought when first ever hearing this question. If the plane doesn't get forward momentum how could it take off?

In the show it clearly moves along the conveyor belt allowing air to flow over the wings so of course it will take off.

I thought though that the conveyor belt would be fast enough to basically keep the wheels spinning in place. In that scenario it seems the plane could not take off.

Yes there are some really light planes whose thrust could maybe produce enough airflow to get it off the ground, but I'm talking about the 747 in the original question.

So, if a 747 has each wheel on a non electric treadmill, will it off?