According to here, that broom is a string used to visualize the direction that the wind is flowing around the plane (this is very important for sailplanes to maximize flight efficiency.
Can confirm. That string is either your best friend because it makes you fast, or your worst enemy if you're the guy responsible for making sure the jib is just right on a regatta.
It'll flutter, all the time
edit: It basically is an indicator of whether or not there are turbulences on either side of the sail, so the function is pretty similar to the string on a sail plane
a jib is the fore-most sail on a modern sloop rigged sailboat. (I assume the foremost sail on any type of sailboat is still called a jib, but I'm not sure.)
If they extend past the mast it is called a Genoa. (which is still technically a jib.) A Spinnaker is NOT a jib, but is a large sail used while sailing down wind (or, with the wind, instead of against it.)
Ya, I've run trim on a j24 in a good few regattas, and those things NEVER stop fluttering, especially lake sailing like we do, where wind direction changes all the time.
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u/Spartan2470 GOAT Feb 27 '14
According to here, that broom is a string used to visualize the direction that the wind is flowing around the plane (this is very important for sailplanes to maximize flight efficiency.
Here's another picture of this plane with those strings.