Editing Tailplane (section)

{{Short description|Small lifting surface of a fixed-wing aircraft}}
{{Refimprove|date=December 2007}}
{{Use British English|date=April 2019}}
[[File:Empennage components FAA GFH.svg|thumb|upright=1.2|The horizontal stabilizer is the fixed horizontal surface of the [[empennage]]]]

A '''tailplane''', also known as a '''horizontal stabilizer''', is a small [[lift (force)|lifting]] surface located on the tail ([[empennage]]) behind the main lifting surfaces of a [[fixed-wing aircraft]] as well as other non-fixed-wing aircraft such as [[helicopter]]s and [[gyroplane]]s. Not all fixed-wing aircraft have tailplanes. [[Canard (aeronautics)|Canard]]s, [[tailless aircraft|tailless]] and [[flying wing]] aircraft have no separate tailplane, while in [[V-tail]] aircraft the [[vertical stabilizer]], [[rudder]], and the tail-plane and elevator are combined to form two diagonal surfaces in a V layout.

The function of the tailplane is to provide stability and control. In particular, the tailplane helps adjust for changes in position of the [[center of pressure (fluid mechanics)|centre of pressure]] or [[centre of gravity]] caused by changes in speed and attitude, fuel consumption, or dropping cargo or payload.