In case you're wondering how planes fly without vertical fins....
 

We've all seen it. Done it. Flown it.

A stunningly effective, highly satisfying gunnery run on an aircraft shears off its vertical stab.

Yet it still flies, albeit slightly sideways.

And refuses to go down.

Flight model failure?

I used to think so....

www-youtube-dot-com/watch?v=BEeROJixl6A

Adjust the link to make it work, if I have to tell you how, then you dont deserve to take your next breath.

Was this quite so hard? Why on earth would you also make it harder by editing the link???

www.youtube.com/watch?v=BEeROJixl6A

When i click on the play button, i get:

"Embedding disabled by request."

Thats why I added my embedding editing entry, right below the main post, in the editing section.

Frankly, its a youtube link.

I'd love to spoon feed you the info, but, srsly, stop whinging and just make it work hmmm?

Rofl I find the title of the video offending :lol:

Actually an IAF F15 landed without the starboard wing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I7PBHawwpeM

Must have been a FM bug too, lol.

hahaha i've seen that vid too.

but surely youve shot the tail off a bomber and watched it fly on, without a fin?

why shouldn't it?

Frankly, it shows a link even with embedding disabled, whinging? Quit being such a child.

hahahahaaa

you could have easily determined what I had posted, but you complained anyway.

thank GOD for the forum whiners.

a typical forum stalwart.

:D

hmmm.

why dont you tell me.

:)

No, I merely pointed out how pointless it was to post an edited link when using the proper one was easier, sorry that you took offense :rolleyes:

There were even Airliners who landed without (the mid air lost) empennage.
They start to skid and roll, but they still keep flying.

And: The B2 flies too, right?

Haha! Good one Moilami :).

Fafnir_6

The whole F-15 landing without a wing story is an urban legend.

binky9

This is nothing..
I've landed a p40 without rudder, elevators (only a small section of the right tail plane was left - everything else was...gone) IN the midst of a freewheeling battle.

They call me a hero!! :-P
:cool:

Guys, its quite easy in fact: The veritical fin is not the only thing, that prevents a plane from skid and shift sidewards. The whole hull itself does also. Some planes have a wider hull, some a tighter. How big the ammount of helping stabilizing is, is determind by the shape, the lenght and the area.
Never wondered why such planes like this could fly wonderfull even with such small fin (is there even any?):

http://www.heinrichsen.de/tinairforc...n/image005.jpg
http://www.repligun.com/Gifs/Aircraf...denburg_DI.jpg
http://www.rollmodels.net/nreviews/a...s/w29/w298.jpg

Its the fuselage, that also helps.
It is different with planes with more power and, torgue and rounded fuselages, but still, the effect is existant.

And I can imagine, that a pilot can do wonders with increasing and decreasing the power of the outside engines, just to correct the orientation of his B-29.

It not a handy nor an simple flying, and its much dangerous, but I don't think, its impossible.

The good news is that if you lose either rudder or elevators, the other can be used to perform the same function...just tilt the wings. Like when you are in a tight turn with wings almost perpendicular to the ground...your rudder is acting like an elevator relative to the ground.

Now, when you lose both, you have serious trouble. I have never successfully landed a virtual single engine plane after losing both rudder and elevators. I'm sure others can and have, but I have never been able to get the power balance right without nose diving lol. Twin engine planes give a little more control with differential thrust but my success in landing isn't even 50% even then.

My last mission in a Pacific campaign ended with a successful (relative term) carrier landing with no vertical stabilizer and only one elevator. Without that little but of elevator control, I would have been going for a swim lol.

Splitter

You should supply proof.

I saw some photos and also a video...so it´s not an urban legend...It´s fully possible because of the width of fuselage and engines

Approximately 83%?
That made me laugh :)

Why would you say that? Why would they make up such a story? What about the pictures? The airframe apparently went on to score two kills. Here is a thread about the incident: http://message.snopes.com/showthread.php?t=10365

The F-15 has a very high thrust to weight ratio, that gives a pilot a lot of options.

Or were you talking about the aerobatic plane landing with one wing?

Splitter