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Aviation glossary

Rudder

Also: rudder surface, yaw control

The aircraft

Movable surface hinged to the back of the fin that swings the nose left or right, controlling the aircraft in yaw.

What it is

The rudder is worked by the pedals on the flight deck. Deflected to one side, it pushes the tail the other way and the nose swings round: this is yaw. Despite what one might expect, it is not what turns an aircraft in normal flight; aeroplanes turn by banking with the ailerons, and the rudder keeps the turn coordinated and the aircraft aligned with its flight path.

It comes into its own in two situations. In a crosswind it lets the pilot line the aircraft up with the runway just before touchdown. And on a twin with one engine out, it counters the asymmetric thrust that tries to swing the nose towards the failed engine; the size of the fin and rudder is set largely by that case. On the ground, the pedals also steer the nosewheel through a few degrees on many types.

Related terms

EmpennageTail assembly of an aircraft, made up of the horizontal and vertical stabilisers and their control surfaces, providing stability and control. AileronMovable surface near each wingtip; deflected in opposite directions on the two wings, the ailerons roll the aircraft about its longitudinal axis. ElevatorMovable surface on the trailing edge of the horizontal stabiliser that raises or lowers the nose, controlling the aircraft's pitch attitude. Twin-engine aircraftAircraft powered by two engines, now the dominant layout in airline service thanks to the reliability of modern engines. Flight deckForward compartment from which the pilots fly the aircraft and manage its systems, navigation and communications.
Whole glossary

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This page was last updated on October 9, 2026

APA

Vuelopedia. (2026, October 9). Rudder. Retrieved October 17, 2026, from https://vuelopedia.org/en/glossary/rudder

MLA

“Rudder.” Vuelopedia, Fundación Poderia, 9 Oct. 2026, vuelopedia.org/en/glossary/rudder. Accessed 17 Oct. 2026.

Chicago

Vuelopedia. “Rudder.” Fundación Poderia. Last modified October 9, 2026. https://vuelopedia.org/en/glossary/rudder.

Harvard

Vuelopedia (2026) Rudder. Available at: https://vuelopedia.org/en/glossary/rudder (Accessed: 17 October 2026).

BibTeX

@misc{vuelopedia_en_glossary_rudder,
  author       = {{Vuelopedia}},
  title        = {{Rudder}},
  publisher    = {Fundación Poderia},
  year         = {2026},
  date         = {2026-10-09},
  url          = {https://vuelopedia.org/en/glossary/rudder},
  howpublished = {\url{https://vuelopedia.org/en/glossary/rudder}},
  urldate      = {2026-10-17},
  note         = {Accessed 2026-10-17}
}

Wikipedia

{{cite web |url=https://vuelopedia.org/en/glossary/rudder |title=Rudder |website=Vuelopedia |publisher=Fundación Poderia |date=2026-10-09 |access-date=2026-10-17 |language=en}}

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