H-tails and Triple Tails
The majority of airplanes use the conventional tail configuration with a single, centrally mounted vertical tail and rudder. Sometimes, however, the vertical tail is...
Design Process: T-Tails
A T-tail is a configuration where the horizontal tail is mounted on top of the vertical tail rather than directly to the fuselage. T-tails...
Design Process: V-Tails
A V-tail is a configuration where the horizontal stabilizer and vertical fin are replaced by a pair of surfaces mounted at a high dihedral...
Design Process: Vertical Tail Spin Considerations
Not every airplane is designed to perform intentional spins, but that doesn’t mean the designer can safely ignore the effect of the vertical tail...
Design Process: Vertical Tail Planform
The size and shape of the planform of the vertical tail determine its ability to perform its stabilizing and control functions. In steady-state cruise flight,...
Design Process: Vertical Tail Functions–Yaw Stability and Damping
The vertical tail performs multiple tasks to stabilize and control the airplane. This month we will explore what the vertical tail contributes to the...
Design Process: All-Moving Tails
A conventional horizontal tail has a fixed horizontal stabilizer with an elevator hinged to it to provide pitch control. The “fixed” portion of the...
Design Process: Pitch Force Trim
For an airplane to maintain steady-state level flight it must be trimmed in pitch. The airplane is trimmed when the net pitching moment acting...
Design Process: Tail Trim Functions
In addition to stabilizing the airplane in pitch, the horizontal tail must also trim the airplane. In steady-state level flight, the airplane flies at...
Design Process: Horizontal Tail
The horizontal tail has two functions. It provides control power to trim and maneuver the airplane in pitch, and it stabilizes the airplane about...
In Case You Missed it
Design Process: Distribution of Lift Coefficient
In the last few months, we have explored how planform and taper affect both...
All About Avionics: Cutting The Metal
Heres something to ponder: By the time you get to the point where you are ready to build the panel in your homebuilt aircraft, you've already mastered many of the skills and techniques you'll need to do it by virtue of completing the airframe. That statement is all the more credible when it comes from someone with a vested interest in the subject, our own avionics expert Stein Bruch.
