Airplanes!

Here's a simple brain teaser (via metafilter).

A plane is standing on a runway that can move (some sort of conveyer belt). The plane moves in one direction, while the conveyer moves in the opposite direction. This conveyer has a control system that tracks the plane speed and tunes the speed of the conveyer to be exactly the same (but in the opposite direction). Can the plane take off?

What do you think? Also, do you think I got the right answer initially (what with all the physics)?

The answer, after the jump. But think about it first!




Yup, the plane will take off just fine. I initially thought the plane wouldn't take off, but I was wrong.

An explaination is here.
Further explaination here.
Yet another one here.

The last one is a bit more rude, with quotes like "I could understand a random high school dropout being fooled by this, but a pilot?" Screw you, pal. I get the aerodynamics, but I don't spend a lot of time thinking about airplane wheels.