Which angular motion concerns the nose moving left or right around the vertical axis, mainly controlled by the rudder?

Which angular motion concerns the nose moving left or right around the vertical axis, mainly controlled by the rudder?

• A. Yaw
• B. Pitch
• C. Roll
• D. Bank

Answer: (A)

Yaw is the rotation of an aircraft about its vertical axis. When the nose moves left or right without a change in climb or descent, that is yaw. The rudder, mounted on the tail, deflects airflow to create a yawing moment, steering the nose toward or away from the direction you want to turn. This is different from pitch, which is the nose moving up or down about the aircraft’s side-to-side (lateral) axis and is controlled mainly by the elevator; and from roll, which is the wings tilting about the aircraft’s front-to-back (longitudinal) axis and is controlled mainly by the ailerons. Bank is the tilt of the wings resulting from roll, not the instantaneous yaw motion. So the described motion—nose moving left or right around the vertical axis, mainly controlled by the rudder—matches yaw.

Yaw is the rotation of an aircraft about its vertical axis. When the nose moves left or right without a change in climb or descent, that is yaw. The rudder, mounted on the tail, deflects airflow to create a yawing moment, steering the nose toward or away from the direction you want to turn. This is different from pitch, which is the nose moving up or down about the aircraft’s side-to-side (lateral) axis and is controlled mainly by the elevator; and from roll, which is the wings tilting about the aircraft’s front-to-back (longitudinal) axis and is controlled mainly by the ailerons. Bank is the tilt of the wings resulting from roll, not the instantaneous yaw motion. So the described motion—nose moving left or right around the vertical axis, mainly controlled by the rudder—matches yaw.