Plain English Meaning

A tail design that uses two slanted surfaces in a V-shape instead of the usual upright fin and flat horizontal tail. The control surfaces on the V do the job of both the elevator and the rudder.

Full Definition

An empennage configuration in which the conventional vertical fin and horizontal stabilizer are replaced by two surfaces set in a V-shape, angled upward and outward from the rear of the fuselage. The movable control surfaces on these two stabilizers, called ruddervators, combine the functions of elevators and rudder: when both move together they act as elevators (pitch control), and when they move differentially they act as a rudder (yaw control).

Context Anchor

Seen in descriptions, , and discussions of control surfaces on such as the Beechcraft Bonanza V-tail models.