Originally Posted by sellener

I would like to understand induced drag a bit better.

I am fully capable of spitting out phrases I have heard in handbooks, and circulers. For instance.... for a checkride oral I might say induced drag is the penalty an airfoil pays anytime its generating lift.

Or

Wing tip vortices are the source of induced drag

Or

Vortices create downwash behind the trailing edge which effectivly increaseing the angle of the relative wind which also directs the lift vector (which acts perpindiculer to the relative wind) back.

Or

Something about upwash in front of the wing which also changes the relative wind a bit bending the lift vector back

bottom line, I dont truly understand what all causes induced drag....

my best understanding to date is.....

air travels high to low from under the wing towards the wingtip and then combines with the air their to impart a rotation to the air (vortice) the spiraling down motion over the trailing edge makes the effective relative wind angle a bit more and thus the drag vector tilts back to stay perpindiculer to the relative wind.

But I think there's a bit more to it than that if thats even an accurate statement.