Jaguar split tail

[FOX1]

Hello, I am new to this forum and I am looking forward exchanging posts.
About myself, I'm a bit over sixty years old, still working at one of the jet engine makers in the USA.
I enlisted in Navy in 1974 and served until 1978.
I was a jet engine mechanic on A4s and F14s, spent two years on The USS KENNEDY and very briefly on the USS EISENHOWER.
My question is why is the horizontal tail on the Jaguar is split
at the trailing edge, it seems to slight to be a fix for stability or control problems.
Thanks, FOX1

[Mackrick]

Do you have any photos to show exactly what you mean ?

[FOX1]

I don't have any photos but it's noticeable if you look at the trailing edge. At about the mid span on each horizontal stabilizer the trailing edge has a miss match of about an inch or
two.
FOX1

[Sooty655]

This image of the Jaguar at the IWM clearly shows the step. I can't embed the image because it is too wide ~ click the link to view. I don't know what the purpose of the step could be other than airflow stability.

Anyone got any ideas?

[Mackrick]

The only thing I remember is that the weights beam for the backlash checks used to be positioned up to that step..

[Dougs]

the step look like it is to clear the exhaust so as not to "enhance" the stabaliser performance when it enters the exhaust flow it it were not steped it looks like it would hit the jetflow in extream manovers causing no linear conrtol.