Steering of an Aircraft:
There are a few main components that contribute to the steering of the aircraft. These components are the ailerons, the elevators, the rudder, as well as the horizontal and vertical stabilizers.
There are a few main components that contribute to the steering of the aircraft. These components are the ailerons, the elevators, the rudder, as well as the horizontal and vertical stabilizers.
- The ailerons are horizontal flaps located at the end of each wing. These flaps allow an aircraft to generate more lift in one wing than the other, which in turn creates a rolling motion so that the aircraft can bank left or right and change heading. For example, if the pilot wants to bank to the right, they lower the left aileron and raise the right aileron.
- The rudder is the vertical flap located on the very back of the airplane. Its main use is to steer the airplane to the left or to the right. If the pilot wants to turn to the left, they use the left rudder panel which also turns the rudder to the left. To go to the right, they just turn the rudder to the right.
- The last component shown in the image above is the elevators. This helps point the nose of the aircraft either up or down. If the aircraft wants to go up, the angle of attack (the angle at which the elevator is set) is changed to put the tail down, which in turn points the nose up. To point the aircraft downwards, elevator is pointed upwards.
The stabilizers are used to keep the aircraft going steadily in the desired direction. The vertical stabilizer is used to keep the aircraft from going to the right or left, and the horizontal stabilizer is used to prevent the aircraft from going up or down.
All of these parts of the aircraft are used to redirect airflow, which can create a vertical force (in the case of the aileron, elevator, and horizontal stabilizer) or create a horizontal force (such as with the vertical stabilizer and rudder).
All of these parts of the aircraft are used to redirect airflow, which can create a vertical force (in the case of the aileron, elevator, and horizontal stabilizer) or create a horizontal force (such as with the vertical stabilizer and rudder).