'V' is For Variety

The iconic empennage evolves.

Tuesday, March 07, 2023 at 04:17 PM ET

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Apart from the Bonanza, most people would be hard-pressed to name many V-tail airplanes, but a list of no fewer than 142 of them can be found online. [Credit: Jessica Ambats]

Key Takeaways:

V-tails were initially perceived to offer advantages in drag and manufacturing, but historical analyses, including NACA studies, concluded they provided no decisive aerodynamic superiority over conventional tails and introduced structural and control complexities.
The iconic V-tail Beech Bonanza was discontinued due to structural design flaws in its tail surfaces, not inherent issues with the V-tail configuration itself, and its performance benefits were often exaggerated by marketers.
Modern V-tail applications are primarily driven by practical necessities, such as accommodating aft-mounted jet engines or for stealth characteristics, with current designs tending towards larger, more robust surfaces and higher dihedral angles to ensure adequate control authority.

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One day back in ancient times, I went to Van Nuys Airport (KVNY) to report on a gadget that was supposed to improve the directional stability of V-tail Beechcraft Bonanzas. It consisted of a bent-up aluminum channel about 8 feet long, similar to a length of roof gutter, that screwed to the underside of the aft fuselage. Its creator explained that it trapped a stream of air and thereby kept the tail from swinging from side to side.

I did not see how this could be, but I flew the Bonanza, first without the channel, and then with it. I kicked the rudder pedals a number of times and duly noted my subjective impression of the damping—that is, the number and size of oscillations required to return to steady flight. I am embarrassed to report that I did feel that the airplane with the channel was a little stiffer directionally. Possibly placebo effect.