"Andy Blackburn" wrote in message
...
This is a pretty amusing conversation from an engineering
point of view - lots of opinions and a smattering of
facts - some of them even true!

Vertical tail volume is in fact the appropriate design
paramerter for determining static directional stability
for any aircraft. A longer moment arm and/or a larger
surface area (fin plus rudder) will increase stability.
Gliders have long tail booms because you get a better
drag tradeoff by making the boom longer than by making
the fin bigger. In addition, gilders generally need
more tail volume because their high aspect ratios generate
considerable adverse yaw. I have not looked at the
Genesis planform in detail, but I suspect (as has been
already observed) that it has a longer tail arm than
at first appears because of the forward sweep and wide
root chord. Even so, that vertical stab looks pretty
puny so I'd be curious to hear if it has the 'cha-chas'.


It doesn't.

Bill Daniels