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F-18 rudders during take-off October 25, 2009

Posted by David Cenciotti in Military Aviation, Naval Aviation.
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Some visitors of this site that analysed the pictures I took on the USS Nimitz (http://cencio4.wordpress.com/2009/10/23/images-from-the-uss-nimitz-cvn-68/), asked me why the F-18 (both C, E and F versions) has the rudders deflected inwards during catapult launches.
That position of the rudders is common to all the Hornets, not only those departing from the flight deck of an aircraft carrier: the rudders are deflected to help the nose raising as the aircraft leaves the ship. Since the vertical fins are angled outwards, deflecting both rudders inwards gives a downward component of lift, which acts behing the centre of graviting generating a momentum that assists the elevators.


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