Quote Originally Posted by Dana View Post
In theory a canard can be more efficient because the forward stabilizing surface is lifting, decreasing the load the wing must carry, while an aft stabilizer exerts downforce, increasing the load the wing must carry. In practice, the forward stabilizer of a canard must be more highly loaded to insure manageable stall behavior, causing extra trim drag and negating much of the advantage.
Years ago, a college student wrote a program to optimize the canard size. The final result was that the canard should be five times larger than the wing.....

Ron "Think About It" Wanttaja