What is a canard?
The canard on the Dragonfly is a full-span airfoil at the front of the aircraft that serves to distribute the wing loading between the front and rear lifting surfaces. The elevators are mounted on the canard. Thus, to climb, one increases lift on the canard, instead of increasing drag on the tail. In theory, this produces a more efficient aircraft, although some engineers would argue this. The canard is rigged to stall before the main wing, which means that most stalls are nothing more than a gentle nodding in pitch. The main wing is never able to stall, and so spins are theoretically impossible.
