[gridlock]

You can land an airplane without a rudder (obviously), but it gets really tricky to land one without a vertical fin.

Landing an airliner without a rudder can be a might tricky in itself. They were pretty lucky, and the pilots were pretty good. If airliners did not need rudders, they would save the weight by not putting them on in the first place!

[Ol' Dan Tucker]

Landing an airliner without a rudder can be a might tricky in itself. They were pretty lucky, and the pilots were pretty good. If airliners did not need rudders, they would save the weight by not putting them on in the first place!

I never said they weren't needed. Didn't say it wasn't tricky. Re-read my post.

My opinion comes from discussions about rudder usage with my dad, who's a retired airline pilot with 35 years experience flying everything from Connies to 767's.

[patton]

v-tailed DR killer