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So long as the wheels are part of the body themselves, there is a treadmill that could stop the plane from taking off. A theoretical one at the very least. Since it is part of the body, a portion of the force used to push the wheels back will transfer to the plane as a whole. This makes sense since the plane cannot move forward and just leave a solid part of it behind. The problem would be one of getting a treadmill that could exert enough force on the wheels to completely counter the forward thrust of the engine without just breaking the wheels.

It would work similar to this. If I tied a rope around your arm and pulled back on it, could I keep you from running forwards? The power is all in your legs, but the effect on the body from an external source is still a factor. I think everyone here is assuming the treadmill will be using only the wheels of the plane for its speed, but I can't imagine why anyone would make that assumption. All modern treadmills I have seen can move on their own opening up the possibility to increase the force on the wheels independant of their actual motion.



Starcraft 2 ID: Gnizmo 229