> Would the answer be different for a fixed wing glider that has all > control surfaces locked in a neutral position? In other words, does > the self-adjusting/ pendular pitch of the parafoil affect the IAS it > stabilizes at? You seem to have an intuition that a parafoil (or paraglider or hang glider) tends to trim to a constant *pitch attitude*, and that this is somehow different from a more conventional aircraft's tendency to trim to a *constant angle-of-attack*. In reality -- at least as long as we make no changes in the aircraft's configuration (physical shape), and we don't introduce Thrust into the picture, these are just two different ways of describing *the same thing*. In an unpowered glider, the glide ratio with respect to the airmass is determined by the L/D ratio. We can think of the glider's pitch attitude as being the result of the angle-of-attack *minus* the glide angle relative to the airmass; this result may be either positive or negative. Also note that *as long as we make no changes in the configuration (physical shape) of the aircraft, and as long as we don't introduce a thrust force from a motor*, then each possible value of the L/D ratio, and thus each possible value of the glide angle relative to the airmass, corresponds to *one particular angle-of-attack*. Therefore, tending to trim to a constant *pitch attitude* is the *same* as tending to trim to a constant *angle-of-attack*--either way, the glider will trim to a given glide ratio, and a given Indicated airspeed. So the answer to your question is "no". Now, if we were *varying* the glide ratio by deploying wing-mounted spoilers, or by adding some power, then in some hypothetical aircraft (perhaps with an autopilot in the loop?) that always trimmed to a given *pitch attitude*, that *would* generate a change in angle-of-attack, and therefore a large change in Indicated airspeed<sup>1</sup>. Note also that *if* the spoilers (or the thrust force) generated no pitching moment *relative to the aerodynamic center of the aircraft*, they *would* generate a strong pitch torque *relative to the CG of the aircraft*, if the CG is *far below the aerodynamic center of the aircraft.* This would result in a change in the trim angle-of-attack. In the hang glider case specifically<sup>2</sup>, *one* valid way to analyze this situation is to view the wing itself as a free body, with a tendency to trim to given specific angle-of-attack, while the pilot's body exerts a pitch torque on the wing that (at least in steady-state flight) *varies with the pitch attitude of the aircraft* and thus tends to bias the angle-of-attack in a way that is dependent on pitch attitude. *Another* valid way to analyze this situation is to simply note that the spoiler (or the thrust force) is generating a net pitching torque about the CG of the whole system, even if it is acting with zero moment-arm relative to the aerodynamic center of the wing. If we introduce a thrust force that *acts through the CG of the whole system*, rather than through the aerodynamic center of system, we'll find that the wing still tends to trim to a constant angle-of-attack (and thus a nearly constant airspeed<sup>3</sup>) as we vary the thrust force, even though the pitch attitude will vary with the climb or descent angle. So even though the "pendulum stability" provided by the arrangement of the CG far below the aerodynamic center of the wing does play an important role in the flight dynamics of parafoils, paragliders, hang gliders (in the case where pilot is holding a fixed *position* in the control frame), etc, it's not really true that such aircraft have an absolute tendency to trim to a fixed *pitch attitude*. But for the simple case of steady-state<sup>4</sup> wings-level gliding flight in a fixed configuration, that is a valid way to look at the dynamics. We'll come up with a "no" answer to the questions quoted above regardless of whether we view the aircraft as tending to trim to a constant angle-of-attack, or to a constant pitch attitude. Addendum: a comment by the questioner has indicated that he believes that Drag may be reduced during flight at high altitudes, and wonders if the Drag is reduced proportionally on all parts of the aircraft, and if not, whether this would affect the aircraft's trim angle-of-attack, considering the large vertical distance between the various parts of the aircraft. For a given angle-of-attack and thus a given L/D ratio, in unpowered flight L = W * cosine (glide angle) = W * cosine (arctan (D/L)), and D = W * sine (arctan (D/L)), regardless of how high the Indicated Airspeed must be to generate those values of L and D. Therefore-- ignoring Reynold's number effects-- there is no reduction in drag on *any* part of the aircraft just because the altitude is increased. Read more about "pendulum" pitch stability in this answer to a related ASE question: https://aviation.stackexchange.com/questions/53437/does-pendulum-effect-apply-to-hang-gliders-or-any-aircraft/56548#56548 Footnotes: 1) Consider an aircraft whose trim characteristics are such that it *perfectly holds a given angle-of-attack* regardless of changes in thrust, or changes in configuration that increase the drag coefficient (without affecting the lift coefficient). Even such an aircraft will *still* experience *some* change in Indicated airspeed when the Thrust is altered, or when the drag coefficient is altered. The reason for this is that the total Lift required for steady-speed (wings-level) flight is not constant, but rather varies according to the cosine of the descent or climb angle. For more, see this related ASE answer: https://aviation.stackexchange.com/questions/40921/does-lift-equal-weight-in-a-climb/56476#56476 2) We refer to a hang glider specifically, because the wing shape of a paraglider or parafoil may have no tendency to trim to any given angle-of-attack without the pilot attached, even the wing could somehow be made to maintain its shape. Note also that we're assuming the pilot either has his "hang strap" attached somewhat below the CG of the wing itself, or we're assuming that the pilot is holding himself in a *fixed position* relative to the control frame. If neither of these things are true-- if the pilot's weight is attached exactly at the CG of the wing, and the pilot is just hanging freely and exerting no muscle force on the control frame, then his weight effectively acts at the CG of the wing, not below it. In a paraglider or parafoil, the multiple lines act as fixed struts that hold the pilot in a completely fixed position relative to the wing, unless he is making intentional control inputs by pulling on the lines etc, so in way these aircraft provide an even better example of the dynamics we're exploring, except for the lack of inherent pitch stability *in the wing itself* -- these aircraft are *totally* dependent on "pendulum stability*. 3) See footnote (1). 4) Re "steady-state": for further insight into what "pendulum stability" does and does not mean, search up some videos of hang glider and paraglider aerobatics. Though limited to positive G-loadings, the maneuvers that can be performed in such aircraft may surprise the reader!