Tailplane Stall

Question 1

What is a tailplane stall?

Answer 1

Occurs when the horizontal stabilizer is no longer able to produce sufficient downforce to counteract the nose down tendency of the airplane.

Usually due to icing on the horizontal stabilizer

Question 2

What factors increase the likelihood of a tailplane stall?

Answer 2

1. High wing aircraft
2. Icing conditions
3. Flaps fully extended

Question 3

What are the warning signs of a tailplane stall?

Answer 3

1. Difficulty trimming the aircraft
2. Need for large amounts of nose up trim
3. Nose pitching down
4. Control stick vibrating or oscillating
5. Control wheel moves on its own
6. Loss of elevator effectiveness

Question 4

How do you recover from a tailplane stall?

Answer 4

1. Flaps up
2. Reduce power
3. Pull up
4. Activate de-icing