FAA-H-8083-25C, ch. 5

What are roll, pitch and yaw?

Every change of attitude is a rotation about one or more of three axes. Here are the axes, the exam traps and practice questions, with the FAA source under each answer.

Part 107, explained · Last reviewed October 25, 2026 against the eCFR and faa.gov. UAV Campus is not affiliated with the FAA.

What are the three axes of rotation, and what are roll, pitch and yaw?

The axes are three imaginary lines through the aircraft's center of gravity, at 90 degrees to each other. Motion about the longitudinal axis (nose to tail) is roll, about the lateral axis (wingtip to wingtip) is pitch, and about the vertical axis is yaw. On a conventional airplane, ailerons control roll, elevators pitch and the rudder yaw.

Sources: FAA-H-8083-25C ch. 5, Axes of an Aircraft · FAA-H-8083-25C ch. 5, Axes of an Aircraft

What the FAA handbook says

FAA-H-8083-25C ch. 5, Axes of an Aircraft

The axes of an aircraft are three imaginary lines that pass through an aircraft’s CG.

FAA-H-8083-25C ch. 5, Axes of an Aircraft

The axis passes through the CG and parallel to a line from nose to tail is the longitudinal axis, the axis that passes parallel to a line from wingtip to wingtip is the lateral axis, and the axis that passes through the CG at right angles to the other two axes is the vertical axis.

FAA-H-8083-25C ch. 5, Axes of an Aircraft

Roll is controlled by the ailerons; pitch is controlled by the elevators; yaw is controlled by the rudder.

Sources: FAA-H-8083-25C ch. 5, Axes of an Aircraft · FAA-H-8083-25C ch. 5, Axes of an Aircraft · FAA-H-8083-25C ch. 5, Axes of an Aircraft

Exam traps

  • All three axes pass through the aircraft's CG at 90 degree angles to each other.
  • Roll is motion about the longitudinal axis, which resembles the roll of a ship from side to side.
  • Yaw is the left and right movement of the aircraft's nose.
  • Other types of aircraft may use different methods of controlling the movements about the various axes.

Try it: practice questions

Similar to the FAA test, not the actual test questions.

Practice question 1

In a fixed-wing aircraft, roll is controlled by

  1. A the stabilizer.
  2. B the ailerons.
  3. C the rudder.
Show the answer
Answer: B. the ailerons.

(Roll is controlled by the ailerons in an airplane. See “Loading and Performance > Axes of Rotation” for more information.

FAA source: FAA-H-8083-25C ch. 5, Axes of Rotation

Practice question 2

In a fixed-wing aircraft, yaw is controlled by

  1. A the rudder.
  2. B the ailerons.
  3. C the stabilizer.
Show the answer
Answer: A. the rudder.

(Yawing is controlled by the rudder in an airplane. See “Loading and Performance > Axes of Rotation” for more information.)

FAA source: FAA-H-8083-25C ch. 5, Axes of Rotation

Which control surface causes yaw?

On a conventional airplane, yaw is controlled by the rudder. Roll is controlled by the ailerons and pitch by the elevators.

Source: FAA-H-8083-25C ch. 5, Axes of an Aircraft

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