Originally Posted by
milepig
maybe I'm just old fashioned, but it seems that building a plane that tend to tip on it's tail is a design flaw?
A tail-tip is possible on any aircraft with tricycle landing gear.
The airplane has to be balance when fully loaded. If you take an airplane that is balanced when fully loaded and unload the right half of the passenger compartment, and the front cargo compartment, while keeping the back half of the cabin fully loaded (always happens when deplaning from the front) and the back cargo loaded, and it is going to tip. Every single one of them.
You try to limit the load in the aft cargo compartment, and maximize load in the forward cargo, so that it won't be a problem. That's not always possible without leaving bags behind. The longer the airplane has been stretched, the easier it is to end up in this situation. Keep the cabin door closed until the tailstand is installed, or until the aft cargo is unloaded in no tail stand is available, prevents the tip.