Glossary · Keels, foils & rudders
L-foil
Also called: Foil en L, L-shaped foil, foil en V
A foil made of a vertical shaft and an almost horizontal wing: it makes the boat fly.
With its low, almost horizontal wing, the L-foil makes a lot of lift even at moderate speed. It allows flying but needs fine control of its rake, as its lift does not regulate itself like a C-foil's. Flying trimarans use foils of this kind, and recent IMOCA generations have moved to flatter foils, close to an L or a V.