di Aircraft
A vehicle that can fly
Ex: Several types of aircraft participated in the air show last weekend. The planes that flew close to the ground and performed barrel rolls were the most popular.
Ex: My grandmother rode in a hot air balloon, an aircraft without a motor, to celebrate her birthday. She was excited about it.
Although balloons move about with the wind, they are not really aircrafts because there is no way to control where they go. Even a glider has controls that let the pilot steer it. If you have ever made a paper airplane, you know it is difficult to control where it goes. It would not be called an aircraft. Kites and parachutes also move through the air without motors.
Ex: Even though John tried several times, he could not make his paper airplane land on the teacher's desk.
Ex: Because it doesn't have a motor, a glider must be controlled by the wind and the pilot's use of hand and foot controls to make a safe landing.
Spacecraft
A vehicle that is capable of traveling in outer space
Ex: The earliest spacecraft made brief trips into outer space, and some of them carried animals rather than humans.
Ex: The shuttle was a spacecraft that carried both military officers and doctors or scientists who performed experiments in space.
Most people learned about spacecraft from science fiction books and movies before space travel was even possible. The most famous fictional spacecraft is the starship Enterprise from the Star Trek television show and movies.
Ex: Movies about spacecraft travel were popular before humans could actually travel to outer space.
Ex: Captain Kirk was the commander of the spacecraft known as the starship Enterprise during its travels in outer space.
