Name: ID: course code: EK2109

Aircraft Empennage
The empennage also known as the tail or tail assembly, of most gives stability to the aircraft,
in a similar way to the feathers on an arrow the term derives from the French for this. Most
aircraft feature empennage incorporating vertical and horizontal stabilizing surfaces which
stabilize the flight dynamics of pitch and yaw, as well as housing control surfaces.

In spite of effective control surfaces, many early aircraft that lacked stabilizing empennage were
virtually un-flyable. Today, only a few (often relatively unstable) heavier than air aircraft are
able to fly without an empennage.
Structure
Structurally, the empennage consists of the entire tail assembly, including the fin, the tail
plane and the part of the fuselage to which these are attached. On an airliner this would be all the
flying and control surfaces behind the rear pressure bulkhead.
The front, usually fixed section of the tail plane is called the horizontal stabilizer and is used to
balance and share lifting loads of the main plane dependent on centre of gravity considerations
by limiting oscillations in pitch. The rear section is called the elevator and is usually hinged to
the horizontal stabilizer. The elevator is a movable airfoil that controls changes in pitch, the up-
and-down motion of the aircraft's nose. Some aircraft employ an all-moving stabilizer and
elevators in one unit, known as a stimulator.
The vertical tail structure (or fin) has a fixed front section called the vertical stabilizer, used to
restrict side-to-side motion of the aircraft (yawing). The rear section of the vertical fin is
the rudder, a movable airfoil that is used to turn the aircraft in combination with the ailerons.
Some aircraft are fitted with a tail assembly that is hinged to pivot in two axes forward of the fin
and stabilizer, in an arrangement referred to as a movable tail. The entire empennage is rotated
vertically to actuate the horizontal stabilizer, and sideways to actuate the fin.
The aircraft's cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder are often located in the empennage,
because the aft of the aircraft provides better protection for these in most aircraft crashes.
Trim
In some aircraft trim devices are provided to eliminate the need for the pilot to maintain constant
pressure on the elevator or rudder controls.
The trim device may be:

 A trim tab on the rear of the elevators or rudder which act to change the aerodynamic load on
the surface. Usually controlled by a cockpit wheel or crank.
 An adjustable stabilizer into which the stabilizer may be hinged at its spar and adjustably
jacked a few degrees in incidence either up or down. Usually controlled by a cockpit crank.
 A bungee trim system which uses a spring to provide an adjustable preload in the controls.
Usually controlled by a cockpit lever.
 An anti-servo tab used to trim some elevators and stabilizers as well as increased control
force feel. Usually controlled by a cockpit wheel or crank.
 a servo tab used to move the main control surface, as well as act as a trim tab. Usually
controlled by a cockpit wheel or crank.
Multi-engine aircraft often have trim tabs on the rudder to reduce the pilot effort required to keep
the aircraft straight in situations of asymmetrical thrust, such as single engine operations.
Tail plane
The tail plane comprises the tail-mounted fixed horizontal stabilizer and movable elevator.
Besides its plan form, it is characterized by:

 Number of tail planes - from 0 (Tailless or canard) to 3 (Roe tri plane)

 Location of tail plane - mounted high, mid or low on the fuselage, fin or tail booms.
 Fixed stabilizer and movable elevator surfaces, or a single combined stabilizer or flying
tail. (General Dynamics F-111)
Some locations have been given special names:

 Cruciform tail - The horizontal stabilizers are placed midway up the vertical stabilizer,
giving the appearance of a cross when viewed from the front. Cruciform tails are often used
to keep the horizontal stabilizers out of the engine wake, while avoiding many of the
disadvantages of a T-tail. Examples include the Hawker Sea Hawk and Douglas A-4 Sky
hawk.
 T-tail - The horizontal stabilizer is mounted on top of the fin, creating a "T" shape when
viewed from the front. T-tails keep the stabilizers out of the engine wake, and give better
pitch control. T-tails have a good glide ratio, and are more efficient on low speed aircraft.
However, T-tails are more likely to enter a deep stall, and are more difficult to recover from
a spin. T-tails must be stronger, and therefore heavier than conventional tails. T-tails also
have a larger radar cross section. Examples include the Gloster Javelin, Boeing
727 and McDonnell Douglas DC-9.

Fuselage mounted Cruciform T-tail Flying tail plane

Tail configuration
Aircraft empennage designs may be classified broadly according to the fin and tail plane
configurations.
The overall shapes of individual tail surfaces (tail plane plan forms, fin profiles) are similar
to Wing plan forms.
Fins
The fin comprises the fixed vertical stabilizer and rudder. Besides its profile, it is characterized
by:

 Number of fins - usually one or two.

 Location of fins - on the fuselage (over or under), tail plane, tail booms or wings
Twin fins may be mounted at various points:

 Twin tail A twin tail, also called an H-tail, consists of two small vertical stabilizers on either
side of the horizontal stabilizer. Examples include the Antonov An-225 Mriya, B-25
Mitchell, Avro Lancaster, and ERCO Ercoupe.
 Twin boom A twin boom has two fuselages or booms, with a vertical stabilizer on each, and
a horizontal stabilizer between them. Examples include the P-38 Lightning, de Havilland
Vampire, Sadler Vampire, and Edgley-Optica.
 Wing mounted mid-wing as on the F7U Cutlass or on the wing tips as on the Handley Page
Manx and Rutan Long-EZ

Twin tail boom Wing mounted

Tail plane mounted

Ventral fin
Triple fins
Unusual fin configurations include:

 No fin - as on the McDonnell Douglas X-36. This configuration is sometimes incorrectly

referred to as "tailless".
 Multiple fins - examples include the Lockheed Constellation (three), Bellanca 14-13 (three),
and the Northrop Grumman E-2 Hawkeye (four).
 Ventral fin - underneath the fuselage. Often used in addition to a conventional fin as on the
(North American X-15 and Dornier Do 335).

V and X tails
An alternative to the fin-and-tail plane approach is provided by the V-tail and X-tail designs.
Here, the tail surfaces are set at diagonal angles, with each surface contributing to both pitch and
yaw. The control surfaces, sometimes called ruddervators, act differentially to provide yaw
control (in place of the rudder) and act together to provide pitch control (in place of the elevator).

 V tail: A V-tail can be lighter than a conventional tail in some situations and produce less
drag, as on the Fouga Magister trainer, Northrop Grumman RQ-4 Global Hawk RPV and X-
37 spacecraft. A V-tail may also have a smaller radar signature. Other aircraft featuring a V-
tail include the Beech-craft Model 35 Bonanza, and Davis DA-2. A slight modification to the
V-tail can be found on the Waiex and Monnet Moni called a Y-tail.

 Inverted V tail: The unmanned Predator uses an inverted V-tail as do the Lazair and Mini-
IMP.

 X tail: The Lockheed XFV and Convair XFY Pogo both featured "X" tails, which were
reinforced and fitted with a wheel on each surface so that the craft could sit on its tail and
take off and land vertically.

 Pelican: The Pelican is an all-flying variation on the V tail. It was proposed for the Boeing
X-32 but abandoned, and has not yet been used on any aircraft. The design is said to have the
advantages of greater pitch control and a smaller radar signature.

V-tail Inverted V-tail X-tail Pelican tail

Conclusion
In conclusion, I learnt lot of important facts about the empennage which is call tail
plane and how aircrafts are designed with different kinds of empennage designs
such as ATR 72 aircraft. Also doing this report helped me to understand the
functions of different types of empennages and the reasons why the manufacturers
have designed the tail plane in different types.

References
1) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Empennage
2) http://www.allstar.fiu.edu/aero/flight13.htm
3) http://www.google.lk/#q=aircraft+enpannage
4) http://www.thefreedictionary.com/empennage
5) http://virtualskies.arc.nasa.gov/aeronautics/4.html
6) ]http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/empennage
7) http://www.pilotfriend.com/training/flight_training/fxd_wing/emp.htm
8) http://lurnq.com/lesson/Aviation-for-Beginners/section/Components-of-an-aircraft-
Empennage/
9) http://www.google.lk/search?q=aircraft+empennage&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa
=X&ei=vQ72U4WVDY2QuATv8YKIBw&ved=0CCgQsAQ&biw=1280&bih=699