Lake Sawyer Hawks

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Roll Coupling

Applying rudder alone can cause the aircraft to bank into a turn without aileron input. The ability of the rudder to perform a banked turn is called roll coupling since the rudder input also induces the roll into the bank. Roll coupling is caused by wing dihedral, (the upward bend in the wing), and rudder placement. The higher the rudder is above the wing and fuselage, the greater its roll coupling effect. Roll coupling in performance aerobatic aircraft is not a good thing as it makes certain maneuvers, like a slow roll or stall turn, very difficult. But it is good in an aerobatic trainer as it teaches the pilot how to coordinate rudder and aileron.