An adjustable stabilizer is used to what?

• A. To change the overall lift coefficient
• B. To trim the airplane in flight at a given airspeed
• C. To adjust the wing incidence for takeoff
• D. To adjust engine thrust

Answer: (B)

An adjustable stabilizer is a trim device that changes the angle of the horizontal stabilizer to create a small nose-up or nose-down moment. This lets the airplane hold a desired pitch with minimal control input, so you can fly hands-off at a chosen airspeed. By setting the stabilizer trim for a specific airspeed, the aircraft maintains level flight without you constantly applying back or forward pressure on the yoke. It doesn’t directly change engine thrust or wing incidence, and while trim can influence the drag required for flight, its primary purpose is to set the aircraft’s longitudinal balance so you can maintain a steady flight condition at a given airspeed.