Top Taildraggers Taildragger is the term pilots use to describe an airplane with a small wheel under the tail and the two main wheels up front. You'll hear more about conventional and tricycle landing gear early in your flight training, and it all may sound a bit arcane and irrelevant. That is, until you fly both types of aircraft. But paradoxically, that also is why pilots continue to fly them and several companies still build them. Because taildraggers are more challenging to fly, their pilots consider themselves a cut above their tricycle-pedaling aeronautical brethren.
Most tailwheel airplanes tend to be more traditional in design than trikes.
Virtually all biplanes, for example, are taildraggers. And most bushplanes are taildraggers, thanks to their superior performance on rough airfields. A sign-off from a qualified instructor is required to pilot tailwheel airplanes. But you needn't wait until you ve earned your private pilot certificate to taste this kind of old-fashioned flying. Many student pilots even start their training in taildraggers where such instruction is available.