On Tuesday, March 23, 2021 at 1:28:47 PM UTC-4, John Sinclair wrote:
I believe a nose tow hook reduces lateral excursions, but not all !

It's true that at the very beginning of the launch, the nose hook improves tracking. It's also true that once aerodynamic control is achieved that the rudder works better with a CG hook, and the rudder often (this is type dependent) works better for picking up a low wing than aileron input.

In all cases, the only thing that beats pilot skill is pilot judgement.

The release knob is the most under rated control in the cockpit.

T8