Taildraggers Taildragger is the term pilots use to describe an airplane with a small wheelunder the tail and the two main wheels up front. You'll hear more about conventional and tricyclelanding gear early in your flight training, and it all may sound a bit arcane andirrelevant. That is, until you fly both types of aircraft. But paradoxically, that also is why pilots continue to fly them andseveral companies still build them. Because taildraggers are more challenging tofly, their pilots consider themselves a cut above their tricycle-pedalingaeronautical brethren.
Most tailwheel airplanes tend to be moretraditional in design than trikes.
Virtually all biplanes, for example, are taildraggers. And mostbushplanes are taildraggers, thanks to their superior performance on roughairfields. A sign-off from a qualified instructor is required to pilot tailwheelairplanes. Many student pilots even start theirtraining in taildraggers where such instruction is available. If you are used toflying trigear airplanes, a few hours of dual instruction should bring you up tospeed for a tailwheel sign-off, although regular practice will be necessary tostay proficient.