Learn How to Make 40 Different Paper Airplanes With This Instructional Website

Making the perfect paper airplane is no easy task. Unless you’re a professional, you probably picked up a few tricks in elementary school—then promptly forgot them. Or, you’ve found one tried-and-true plane design, but have never been able to create another model that will fly straight.

Whatever your paper airplane skill level is, the Fold ’n Fly online database probably has a few designs you’ve never even heard of. The website, which we spotted through Laura Olin's eponymous email newsletter, contains instructions for 40 different paper airplane designs, sorted by both difficulty and the goal you want your airplane to achieve, whether that’s maximum distance, extra time aloft, acrobatic stunts, or just looking pretty.

The step-by-step illustrated instructions can teach you how to make a basic airplane like the ones you likely tried to assemble in school (maximizing time aloft) or something more complicated like the stunt plane, which spins through the air when you throw it. You could also embrace a more origami-style approach, creating intricate designs like a folded white dove that barely flies, but will look great on your desk.

If the written instructions are a bit too hard to follow, there are also links to YouTube video instructions and downloadable pages with marked fold guidelines.

Now there’s no excuse for making a bad paper airplane. Explore the database for yourself here.