Airfoil Data
E417

The EPPLER 417 AIRFOIL is a 8.8% chord-thickness airfoil with a maximum camber of 4.4% at 43% chord, suited to general-aviation and UAV wing design. At zero angle of attack the cambered geometry generates positive lift, giving an estimated zero-lift angle of -4.4°.

Thin airfoil theory predicts a stall angle near 11.8° and a peak lift-to-drag ratio around 60 at typical UAV and light-aircraft Reynolds numbers — useful benchmarks before running a full XFOIL or NeuralFoil polar. The slim profile minimises pressure drag at higher speeds but leaves limited spar depth for structural integration.

The E417 appears in the wing design of at least 1 documented aircraft — notably by Kummer/Wisendanger. Its proven track record across rotorcraft designs makes it one of the more field-validated profiles in the UIUC database.

Designers evaluating the E417 typically compare it against profiles of similar thickness: E392 (10.15%), GOE 264 AIRFOIL, S2091-101-83, WORTMANN FX M2 AIRFOIL, DAE 41. The E222 (10.17%) is another reference profile frequently considered alongside it.