The cruciform tail is an aircraft

Aircraft

An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air, or, in general, the atmosphere of a planet. An aircraft counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines.Although...

 empennage

Empennage

The empennage , also known as the tail or tail assembly, of most aircraft gives stability to the aircraft, in a similar way to the feathers on an arrow...

 configuration which, when viewed from the aircraft's front or rear, looks much like a cross

Cross

A cross is a geometrical figure consisting of two lines or bars perpendicular to each other, dividing one or two of the lines in half. The lines usually run vertically and horizontally; if they run obliquely, the design is technically termed a saltire, although the arms of a saltire need not meet...

. The usual arrangement is to have the horizontal stabilizer intersect the vertical tail somewhere near the middle, and above the top of the fuselage

Fuselage

The fuselage is an aircraft's main body section that holds crew and passengers or cargo. In single-engine aircraft it will usually contain an engine, although in some amphibious aircraft the single engine is mounted on a pylon attached to the fuselage which in turn is used as a floating hull...

.

Often this arrangement is chosen to keep the tail out of the engines' wake or to avoid complex interference drag.

The empennage of the Dornier Do 335

Dornier Do 335

The Dornier Do 335 Pfeil was a World War II heavy fighter built by the Dornier company. The two-seater trainer version was also called Ameisenbär . The Pfeils performance was much better than other twin-engine designs due to its unique "push-pull" layout and the much lower drag of the in-line...

, on which the horizontal stabilizers emerged from the fuselage between an upper and lower vertical fin, is also described as cruciform.

Cruciform tails are also used on many kind of airship

Airship

An airship or dirigible is a type of aerostat or "lighter-than-air aircraft" that can be steered and propelled through the air using rudders and propellers or other thrust mechanisms...

s, like classical Zeppelins

Zeppelin

A Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship pioneered by the German Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin in the early 20th century. It was based on designs he had outlined in 1874 and detailed in 1893. His plans were reviewed by committee in 1894 and patented in the United States on 14 March 1899...

.

Benefits

The cruciform tail gives the benefit of clearing the aerodynamics of the tail away from the wake of the engine, while not requiring the same amount of strengthening of the vertical tail section in comparison with a T-tail design.

Applications

• A-4 Skyhawk
  A-4 Skyhawk
  The Douglas A-4 Skyhawk is a carrier-capable ground-attack aircraft designed for the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps. The delta winged, single-engined Skyhawk was designed and produced by Douglas Aircraft Company, and later McDonnell Douglas. It was originally designated the A4D...
  
  
• Avro Canada CF-100
• B-1 Lancer
  B-1 Lancer
  The Rockwell B-1 LancerThe name "Lancer" is only applied to the B-1B version, after the program was revived. is a four-engine variable-sweep wing strategic bomber used by the United States Air Force...
  
  
• Dassault Falcon
  Dassault Falcon
  The Dassault Falcon is a family of business jets, manufactured by Dassault Aviation.Aircraft include:* Dassault Falcon 10 Scaled down Falcon 20...
  
  
• de Havilland Canada DHC-3 Otter
  De Havilland Canada DHC-3 Otter
  The de Havilland Canada DHC-3 Otter is a single-engined, high-wing, propeller-driven, STOL aircraft developed by de Havilland Canada. It was conceived to be capable of performing the same roles as the earlier and highly successful Beaver, but was overall a larger aircraft.-Design and...
  
  
• F-84 Thunderjet
  F-84 Thunderjet
  The Republic F-84 Thunderjet was an American turbojet fighter-bomber aircraft. Originating as a 1944 United States Army Air Forces proposal for a "day fighter", the F-84 flew in 1946...
  
  
• F-84F Thunderstreak
  F-84F Thunderstreak
  The Republic F-84F Thunderstreak was an American-built swept-wing turbojet fighter-bomber. While an evolutionary development of the straight-wing F-84 Thunderjet, the F-84F was a new design. The RF-84F Thunderflash was a photo reconnaissance version....
  
  
• Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner
  Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner
  The Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner or the Fairchild Aerospace Metro is a 19-seat, pressurised, twin turboprop airliner first produced by Swearingen Aircraft and later by Fairchild at a plant in San Antonio, Texas, United States....
  
  
• Jetstream 31
• British Aerospace Jetstream 41

• Gloster Meteor
  Gloster Meteor
  The Gloster Meteor was the first British jet fighter and the Allies' first operational jet. It first flew in 1943 and commenced operations on 27 July 1944 with 616 Squadron of the Royal Air Force...
  
   - a World War II era jet.
• Lockheed Jetstar
  Lockheed JetStar
  The Lockheed JetStar is a business jet produced from the early 1960s through the 1970s. The JetStar was the first dedicated business jet to enter service. It was also one of the largest aircraft in the class for many years, seating ten plus two crew...
  
  
• Messerschmitt 262 - the first operational jet fighter.
• Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15
  Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15
  The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 was a jet fighter developed for the USSR by Artem Mikoyan and Mikhail Gurevich. The MiG-15 was one of the first successful swept-wing jet fighters, and it achieved fame in the skies over Korea, where early in the war, it outclassed all straight-winged enemy fighters in...
  
  
• PBY Catalina
  PBY Catalina
  The Consolidated PBY Catalina was an American flying boat of the 1930s and 1940s produced by Consolidated Aircraft. It was one of the most widely used multi-role aircraft of World War II. PBYs served with every branch of the United States Armed Forces and in the air forces and navies of many other...
  
  
• Roberts Cygnet
  Roberts Cygnet
  |-See also:-External links:*...
  
  
• Rockwell Commander 112
• Sud Aviation Caravelle
  Sud Aviation Caravelle
  The Sud Aviation SE 210 Caravelle was the first short/medium-range jet airliner produced by the French Sud Aviation firm starting in 1955 . The Caravelle was one of the more successful European first generation jetliners, selling throughout Europe and even penetrating the United States market, with...
  
  
• US Aviation Cumulus
  US Aviation Cumulus
  |-See also:-External links:* on Archive.org**...