how exactly is lift generated?

There are many theories and many websites, including respecitble ones like NASA’s webpages, sheding light on the topic.

But here’s perhaps a simpler and easier text that sums it up:

http://voices.yahoo.com/how-airplane-wing-really-generates-lift-1398349.html

Or, if one wants to go a bit deeper, there’s NASA’s explanation: http://www.grc.nasa.gov/WWW/k-12/airplane/bernnew.html

Still, it doesn’t answer the question. HOW is lift generated? Can anyone help?

Lets assume the simplest wing possible. just a plank, pushed by a certain force, at a certain critical speed, angled a few degrees.

What happens with the airflow and forces? Texts on the web more or less agree it is the upper surface which creates most of the lift. So lets stick with the upper surface for now.

air gets into contact with the edge and turns around the edge, following the shape of wing. it then gets to the trailing edge and leaves the surface, under a slight angle downwards.

To me those two moments seem to be key to understanding lift, yet i still don’t really get it. First moment is when air turns around the leading edge and changes direction. (or, if the wing has camber, then it would also turn around the camber). Second moment is when air leaves the wing at an angle, though i suspect that bit needs to be looked in conjunction with the air under the wing, as well.

Many texts that try to explain lift emphasize the turning of air around the top point of the wing, or in this case the leading edge. Is there really some huge momentum there that somehow gets applied to the wing itself and sucks it upwards? That’s the thing i don’t get. air is OVER the wing. It can’t possibly do anything else other than suck the air towards it and thus lift it, right?

Texts i linked emphasize that difference of pressure is NOT key to lift generation. So what is? Coanda effect is also disproved in those texts. So its not like the air keeps the wing stuck to it, then as it turns, it in effect also turns the wing. or is that it? but how can a turn produce lift? wouldn’t that mean the wing is turning in place, without necesarrily going up?

Second part is that air being dumped behind and under the wing. I am guessing action-reaction has its fingers there. Air is, i guess, extering some pressure on the wing. Both upper air and lower air. And since air is travelling downwards, basically what happens is like when a person holds a soap with his hands. when the hands are centered around the mass of the soap, nothing happens. when hands slip towards one end of the soap, they exert pressure on the back of it as well, not just top and bottom. and soap flies out, propelled. And since we have an angle that points a bit up, then the energy that we get propelling the wing propels it up, as well as forward. (that would mean most of the energy actually propels it forward but i guess i’ve no problem with that. should i have?) Is THAT, roughly speaking, how lift (or part of the lift) happens?

So, in the end, is the combination of the two things i mentioned how lift gets made over wing? Or does it work completely differenly? If so, please help and explain.

Thank you.