NACA 0012 vs 2412 vs 4412
These three airfoils are the clearest way to see what camber does. They are identical in every way — 12% thick, with maximum camber at 40% of the chord — except for how much they are cambered: 0%, 2% and 4%. Line them up and the effect of camber on lift, drag and pitching moment becomes obvious.
Side-by-side comparison
Representative values at a Reynolds number of Re = 1×10⁶, low speed. See how each property changes as camber increases from left to right.
| Property | NACA 0012 | NACA 2412 | NACA 4412 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Max camber | 0% | 2% | 4% |
| Max thickness | 12% | 12% | 12% |
| Zero-lift angle α₀ | 0° | ≈ −2.1° | ≈ −4.1° |
| Lift coefficient at 0° | 0.00 | ≈ 0.25 | ≈ 0.45 |
| Max lift Cl,max | ≈ 1.5 | ≈ 1.6 | ≈ 1.7 |
| Stall angle | ≈ 15–16° | ≈ 16° | ≈ 15–16° |
| Min drag Cd,min | ≈ 0.006 | ≈ 0.006 | ≈ 0.006 |
| Pitching moment Cm,c/4 | 0.00 | ≈ −0.05 | ≈ −0.10 |
How these are computed: lift and pitching moment come from thin-airfoil theory (numerically integrated zero-lift angle and quarter-chord moment); drag, stall and maximum lift are empirical models calibrated to XFoil viscous polars at Re = 1×10⁶, Ncrit = 9. Figures are rounded reference values — open any airfoil in the explorer to compute its exact curves live.
What camber actually does
Reading the table left to right — from 0% to 4% camber — four things change in a clear, consistent way:
- Lift shifts up. More camber means more lift at any given angle of attack, and a higher maximum lift coefficient. The symmetric 0012 makes no lift at 0°; the 4412 already makes about 0.45.
- The zero-lift angle goes more negative. A cambered airfoil still lifts at 0°, so you have to pitch it down to reach zero lift — roughly −2° for the 2412 and −4° for the 4412.
- The nose-down pitching moment grows. Camber produces a quarter-chord moment that a symmetric section doesn't have — about −0.05 for the 2412 and −0.10 for the 4412 — which the tail has to trim out.
- Drag rises slightly. Minimum drag is similar for all three, but the more cambered sections pay a little more drag away from their design lift.
Which one should you use?
- NACA 0012 — symmetric, so no lift or moment at 0°. The default for tail surfaces, control surfaces, aerobatic wings and as a CFD benchmark. Full 0012 data →
- NACA 2412 — a balanced, efficient general-purpose wing section; the classic Cessna 172 airfoil. Full 2412 data →
- NACA 4412 — a high-lift choice for slower or more heavily loaded wings, at the cost of more drag and a stronger pitching moment. Full 4412 data →
Compare them live in the explorer →
Load each airfoil, overlay two at once in Compare mode, and watch the lift, drag and moment curves change with camber, angle of attack and Reynolds number.
Open the explorer →Frequently asked questions
The NACA 4412, because it has the most camber (4%). More camber shifts the whole lift curve upward, so at any given angle of attack the 4412 makes the most lift and reaches the highest maximum lift coefficient of the three. The symmetric 0012 makes the least (zero at 0 degrees).
All three are 12% thick with maximum camber at 40% of the chord; they differ only in how much camber they have: 0%, 2% and 4%. Increasing camber raises the lift at a given angle, makes the airfoil lift at more negative angles, increases the maximum lift, and increases the nose-down pitching moment, with a small rise in drag.
Neither is universally better; they do different jobs. The symmetric 0012 makes no lift and no pitching moment at zero angle, which is ideal for tails, control surfaces and aerobatic wings. The cambered 2412 makes useful lift at low angles and is a classic main-wing section, famously on the Cessna 172.
They share thickness and camber position but the 4412 has double the camber (4% vs 2%). The 4412 makes more lift and has a more negative zero-lift angle (about -4 degrees vs -2), useful for higher-lift or lower-speed wings, while the 2412 is a well-balanced general-purpose section with slightly less drag and a weaker pitching moment.
As a rule of thumb: choose the symmetric 0012 for tails, control surfaces or anything that must work upright and inverted; the 2412 for an efficient general-purpose wing; and the 4412 when you want more lift at lower speed and can accept a bit more drag and a stronger pitching moment. Open all three in the explorer to compare them at your own Reynolds number.