Originally Posted by
rwanttaja
The original Fly Baby prototype didn't have very good pitch stability; the contest rules regarding roadability resulted in restricted horizontal stabilizer width. After the fuel-exhaustion crash, Bowers extended the fuselage to improve pitch stability. And you know, it *still* isn't that great... a 50-year-old legacy of non-operational limitations. Lets us get by without trim systems, at least...
If you *do* limit wingspan to fit in some notional idea of a hangar, it'll impact the low-speed capability of the airplane...higher stall speed, possibly poorer stall characteristics. You can gain some of this back with mechanical devices (Fowler flaps, slats, etc.) but that raises the ultimate cost of the airplane, since the owner has to pay more money for the hired guns to construct those items.
Ron Wanttaja