Definition
A landing gear arrangement consisting of two main wheels located forward of the airplane's center of gravity and a single small wheel or skid at the tail. With the tailwheel on the ground, the airplane sits in a nose-high attitude.
Plain English
A landing gear setup with two big wheels under the wings or fuselage near the front, and one small wheel under the tail. The airplane rests with its nose pointed up when parked.
Context Anchor
Seen in aircraft descriptions, ground handling discussions, takeoff and landing training, and comparisons with tricycle landing gear.
Derivation
Called 'conventional' because this was the standard layout for nearly all airplanes in the early decades of aviation, before the tricycle gear (nosewheel forward) became dominant. The name stuck even though tricycle gear is now far more common on modern airplanes.
Why Pilots Care
Conventional gear airplanes handle very differently from tricycle gear airplanes on the ground, especially during takeoff and landing. They require specific training and a tailwheel endorsement, because they are prone to ground looping if mishandled.
Grounding Statement
Picture a tailwheel airplane parked on the ramp: the nose points upward, the main wheels carry most of the weight, and the tail rests on a small wheel at the back.
Intuition Check
“Conventional” does not mean this is the most common landing gear on today’s trainers. Here it means the older, traditional tailwheel-style landing gear arrangement.
Example Sentence 1
Before flying the Piper Cub solo, she had to earn a tailwheel endorsement because it has conventional landing gear.
Example Sentence 2
Many training flights in older airplanes require practice with conventional landing gear to learn proper tailwheel handling.