SESKStuff Everyone Should Know
SESK: Stuff Everyone Should Know · sesk.info/cap-rudder-yaw

Which control surface controls an airplane's yaw, its nose swinging left or right?

The rudder, on the vertical tail.

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  1. The elevators
  2. The rudder ✔
  3. The flaps

Why: The rudder swings the nose left or right about the vertical axis, like steering a boat. Pilots use rudder pedals with the ailerons to make smooth turns.

Huh, didn't know that: Yaw is motion about the vertical axis, which runs top to bottom through the airplane.

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References

Answer: The rudder. The rudder swings the nose left or right about the vertical axis, like steering a boat. Pilots use rudder pedals with the ailerons to make smooth turns.

  1. FAA Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge, Chapter 5 www.faa.gov/sites/faa.gov/files/07_phak_ch5_0.pdf
    yaw is controlled by the rudder
    Checked 2026-10-10.

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