What is adverse yaw?

• A. A natural tendency to yaw in the same direction as the roll
• B. A natural tendency to yaw opposite the roll
• C. No yaw occurs
• D. Yaw is not related to roll

Answer: (B)

Adverse yaw is the tendency of an aircraft to yaw in the opposite direction to the roll when you use the ailerons to bank. When you roll, the wing being lowered (down-wind wing) deflects its aileron, which increases drag on that wing in addition to lifting it. That extra drag creates a yaw moment so the nose initially points away from the direction you’re rolling. For example, a left roll causes the nose to yaw to the right at first. To maintain coordinated flight, you use rudder to counter this yaw and keep the nose aligned with the roll. This is why the correct choice describes yaw opposite the roll. The other statements fail because yaw does occur and is related to roll, and it doesn’t occur in the same direction as the roll.