Editing Delta wing (section)

===Tailless delta===
[[File:Saab Draken.jpg|thumb|The [[Saab 35 Draken]] was a successful tailless double-delta design]]
Like other [[tailless aircraft]], the tailless delta wing is not suited to high wing loadings and requires a large wing area for a given aircraft weight. The most efficient aerofoils are unstable in pitch and the tailless type must use a less efficient design and therefore a bigger wing. Techniques used include:
* Using a less efficient aerofoil which is inherently stable, such as a symmetrical form with zero camber, or even reflex camber near the trailing edge,
* Using the rear part of the wing as a lightly- or even negatively-loaded horizontal stabiliser:
**Twisting the outer leading edge down to reduce the incidence of the wing tip, which is behind the main centre of lift. This also improves stall characteristics and can benefit supersonic cruise in other ways.
**Moving the centre of mass forwards and trimming the elevator to exert a balancing downforce. In the extreme, this reduces the craft's ability to pitch its nose up for takeoff and landing.
The main advantages of the tailless delta are structural simplicity and light weight, combined with low aerodynamic drag. These properties helped to make the [[Dassault Mirage III]] one of the most widely manufactured supersonic fighters of all time.