Motor Along Economically Not all light sport aircraft (LSA) are made alike. You probably knew that already, but consider the Lambada. This sleek composite 2-seat shoulder wing is part airplane, part glider and it has the interchangeable wing tips to prove it. For a soaring enthusiast like myself, flying the Lambada gratified a desire I've had for years, since I first saw the Urban Air design at a German airshow. On January 9, 2008, I went aloft in a Lambada with Josef Bostik - a former U.S. National Champion hang glider pilot turned airline captain - at Wallaby Ranch, an iconic hang glider park in Central Florida where hang gliders are towed aloft behind specially built ultralights. The particular Lambada I flew bore N-number N109UA. Bostik indicated that 108 other Lambada aircraft are flying around the world, though the one I flew is the first '08 model to pass ASTM standard certification. Gorgeous Wings I stood at the wing tip and marveled at the complex wing with its multiple dihedral angles and compound dual taper. And all that is before you change the wing tips to the two standard equipment variations. The Lambada comes standard with one extra set of wing tips: tip extensions to increase soaring power, or standard tips that bump cruise speed a few knots. You can order an optional set of snazzy tips called "Shark" winglets, which extend upward about a foot and a half. "They don't do much," Bostik says, "but they look great." During my evaluation, we went to a sailplane airpark where one sailplane pilot thought the gel coat finish of the Lambada is more like other sailplanes and much superior to work he's seen on composite power planes. Attention to detail like gaps and general smoothness is an obsession of sailplane pilots and designers, so getting high points for finish quality from one of these pilots is significant. Removal of the wing extension involves a small T-handle that screws into a small, recessed stainless-bushed opening that allows the handle to pull a small pin, freeing the spar stub from its mate. With your hand around the wing extension - chord is small near the wingtip - you gently wiggle the stub out of the female opening. Finally, you remount one of two smaller wing tips. The shorter standard wing will add about 5 knots (5.75 mph) to cruise, Bostik says. The cockpit looks smaller than it feels when you enter. A step built into the fuselage helps you up; you then stand on the seat or floor before working your legs forward. At close to 42 inches wide, the Lambada isn't as roomy as some LSA power planes, but it's still a couple of inches wider than a Cessna 172. All but the biggest occupants will fit easily. The Lambada's canopy must be closed securely for flight; it cannot remain open because it swings aft and acts like a large air scoop and too much air blast could damage the hinges. Once closed, latches on either side of the cockpit do their job. To check security, you don't push on the plastic. Push on the canopy frame instead. A latch on each side felt solid and was backed up with another at the center rear that felt equally robust. Occupants will enjoy canopy vents on either side that provide airflow while taxiing. The cockpit layout is fairly conventional with two notable exceptions. First, a lever that looks like a flap handle is actually the air brake handle. With such lift-killing devices and the ability to fly slowly on approach, flaps aren't needed. Secondly, just forward of the air brake handle is a prop control, which allows you to feather the prop (that is, orient the blades for the least drag). A hand brake on the left joystick is hydraulically powered. Up to 120 pounds of luggage can be placed aft of the seats and you can also specify a special tube to accommodate snow skis or other long items that can reach back into the tail fuselage within weight and balance considerations, of course. I found the seat belts a bit tricky to operate until I learned little tricks with the buckles. This is common in airplanes where seat belt design differs widely. I eventually needed to exit the Lambada to stretch my legs. Inside, not much room is available for such exercise. For most pilots this probably wouldn't present a problem. Trim is between the left-seat pilot's legs near the base of the joystick. Flying from the right seat, I found no need to use the trim. so it wasn't a problem that the trim wasn't more accessible. (I often fly in the right seat to make sure the check-out pilot is entirely comfortable and because I'm quite happy in the right seat after thousands of hours of instruction given from this position.) The Lambada I flew was simply equipped with steam gauge instruments. It didn't have a variometer, a common soaring instrument showing lift and sink. Urban Air USA has sold other Lambada aircraft equipped with Becker radios, Garmin 496 GPS, and a Grand Rapids Electronic Flight Information System (EFIS). I'll discuss prices and more options at the end of the article. Cleared for Launch Another treat I enjoyed in the Lambada was the vernier throttle. I know these from general aviation aircraft and they permit precise manipulation of power. When you launch, you merely push in the big button on the handle and advance the throttle as you wish. For in-flight or climb adjustments, turning the large knob allows an exact setting of power. As we taxied out, Bostik observed the Lambada designers put a lot of weight on the tailwheel. The tailwheel feel is unmistakable and it does not break loose for added maneuverability. So because of the Lambada's broad turning radius and the long wingspan, you need to plan ahead to allow enough room for a 180° turn at the end of a runway. However, even small airstrips will suffice with a little foresight. One Lambada pilot said, "You don't want to wait too long to start the tailwheel input to get the plane turning. As long as you lead the turn sufficiently you'll be fine." The Lambada's 49 feet of span that helps her soar so well also requires more attention than short-span LSA. Braking is accomplished by squeezing a single hand lever on the front of the control stick. The brake handle is similar to that of a bicycle hand brake except the Lambada offers a hydraulic boost. Like many LSA, engineers added a simple parking brake function. Braking control using the lever is smooth and quite effective. To help the Lambada stay planted until ready for flight, taxiing is commonly done with the spoilers in the full up position. Let's go Soaring! Let me be clear. The Lambada is not a sailplane. It is a motorglider. I have experience selling a similar aircraft and I found that most buyers liked the long gliding capability, but flew their motorgliders around under power most of the time. That's fine, but when you're ready to soar, the Lambada is very willing and able. First we operated under power so I could get used to the airplane. Best cruise at 4,800 rpm produced about 95 knots (109 mph). At 5,200 rpm the Lambada managed about 100 knots with the long wing tips. If the air is smooth, you can squeak it up to 105 knots (120 mph) plus going to higher altitudes will bump your true airspeed. At the 4,800 rpm cruise setting where power and noise were significantly muted, the 80-hp Rotax 912 burned a mere 3.0 gph (see the sidebar, "Cross- Country LSA" for more on cruise results over a long flight). Bostik is a world-class soaring pilot and with my interest in thermalling, we both wanted to shut down and find some lift. The Lambada's engine shut-down procedure calls for moving the throttle to idle thrust, shutting off all electrical switches, followed with the magnetos' shut-off. When the engine comes to a stop, you can pull the prop lever to put it in a full-feather, lowdrag configuration. If the prop stops such that it interferes with your field of view, you move the prop lever back to normal position and hit the key start switch briefly to move the blade a few degrees. Without also setting the other switches, the engine won't start during this prop repositioning. Once you move the blade where you want it, you can refeather the prop. Alternatively, Urban Air sales director Jim Lee reports, "I like to speed up to 65 knots (75 mph) with the prop unfeathered, and it will slowly rotate to the desired position, and then I feather it." Best glide is 60 knots (69 mph) indicated. That prop feathered, assuming you've put on the extended wing tips that come with each Lambada. Bostik and I spent a most enjoyable 45 minutes catching some lift and feeling how the Lambada works to center in thermals. Once in a thermal, we comfortably slowed the Lambada to 40-45 knots (46-52 mph). Stall comes at 38 knots (44 mph), according to the factory and when you've cored a column of lift, you want to fly slowly, to linger in the lift. Excellent and cooperative controls made it easy to fly slowly, plus Bostik's superb ability to know where lift would be found made this almost too easy. After this quiet period with no need for headsets and only the air moving around the cockpit to add a bit of sound, we prepared to restart the engine. To restart, you reset the prop to cruise pitch (just move the lever forward), turn the magnetos on, and assuming you have the altitude you need, you can nose over to about 110 knots and use the windmilling of the prop to start without running the starter and drawing on the battery. It did so quickly and effortlessly, however you need to prepare for this while you still have altitude. The nose-over doesn't demand much height as the machine quickly recovers to its good gliding capability, but you would not want to mess around with restart when you should be planning a landing approach. Also remember that Vne is 115 knots (132 mph), so you shouldn't get overzealous in your effort to create a windmilling prop. If you have drained your battery or if the engine has cooled enough that electrical restarting is not successful, it's great to be familiar with the option of restart via windmilling. Though the nose seems pointed at the ground during this process, the Lambada is a long gliding airplane that will take you much farther after you level out again. Setting power to reach a highly economical cruise speed of 85 knots (100 mph) results in fuel consumption of less than 3 gph. Using full throttle, the Lambada's climb rate was a strong 1,000 to 1,100 fpm on an 80° day.We were more than 200 pounds under gross weight, which improved climb. To save fuel and reduce engine load, you can throttle back to 5,000 rpm and climb at 70 knots (80.5 mph). "I fly out of a high density altitude airport," says Ted Grussing of Sedona, Arizona. "I seldom have a climb rate under 850 fpm with two persons on board and density altitude in the 9,000-foot range." Even at a more relaxed pace, it took only a few minutes to reached 3,000 feet msl where Bostik thought we'd find enough lift to go soaring. He hasn't lost his soaring instinct.We found plenty of rising air to soar around 45 minutes before voluntarily going back for a couple of landings. Git 'er Down After exploring powered and soaring flight, we went into Seminole Glider Port to practice landings in the Lambada. I was pleasantly surprised; some long gliding airplanes can be challenging to get down and settled on a runway. The Lambada proved quite easy and straightforward. You have to experience air brakes to comprehend the dramatic effect on glide performance they can exert. They also produce a clear sensation of deceleration.With the spoilers out, Bostik indicates the Lambada is slowed to about a 7:1 glide, a huge drop from max L/D of 30. As we positioned ourselves among unpowered sailplanes approaching from different directions, we flew 60 knots (69 mph) max glide speed and worked our way around the pattern using the spoilers at intervals to control our descent rate. Each time we retracted the full-speed upper surface Schemp-Hirth spoilers, the Lambada reacted like someone had cut a tie-down line, shooting forward with restored energy. At idle thrust for several minutes while tracking the other aircraft, the Lambada easily retained enough energy to set up a normal glide path. Pilots new to sailplanes or motorgliders are often surprised to realize you virtually must use spoilers to keep from landing long. Despite the Lambada being a tailwheel airplane, Urban Air USA recommends flaring as you would in a conventional tricycle gear plane. Holding the nose up slightly at about 3 feet above ground allows the Lambada to land itself in a 3-point attitude. Experienced taildragger pilots will find the Lambada very polite. New taildragger pilots with basic techniques have little to fear. After rollout we went back to tailwheel steering. Some feel it's easy to overcontrol due to the inertia produced by those long wings.With practice, the problem disappears completely. According to Lambada pilot and former Air Force test pilot Steve Baerst, "With an approach speed of 60 knots (69 mph) and a landing speed of about 40 knots (46 mph), it shouldn't take too long to decelerate to taxi speed, so your vulnerability zone is pretty minimal." Yes, those long wings have inertia when ground handling. You could expect much the same while flying. Contrarily, I found the Lambada pleasantly responsive in pitch and quite maneuverable in the roll axis, especially considering the 49-foot wingspan. One sailplane technique requirement remains, though; you must use the rudders to coordinate the turns. Lack of coordinated turning can produce a potent adverse yaw. During my stall routine I found the Lambada's power-off stall to be very mild, hardly discernible. Power-on stall had no break. Accelerated right and left turns deepened into a spiral, though this was not threatening and was easily recovered with conventional use of controls. Before we discuss purchase considerations, one popular capability relates to storage. The Lambada's wings and horizontal stabilizer easily detach in minutes for storage and transport, according to Urban Air. The quick disassembly also features automatic control system hookups. And the factory has a dolly system that allows moving the dewinged aircraft while fully supporting the long wings. Cost of an LSA Motorglider In the sailplane world, a motorglider is often considered a rich man's toy. A quarter million dollar Stemme motorglider is a gorgeous piece of work, but the Lambada is far more affordable for the rest of us. Urban Air USA aims to sell about 25 Lambadas in '08. "We could get 50 if we needed them," says Bostik referring to the recently enlarged Czech company. In '09 the factory believes it can produce about 160 airplanes for worldwide use; Urban Air expects the USA to consume about half of these. The basic Lambada aircraft lists for a bit more than $104,000, but it has a long standard equipment list, including an emergency airframe parachute (see importer's Website for the entire list). Add $5,000 for shipping from Europe to Melbourne, Florida, plus a $465 fee to gain the SLSA approval and register the aircraft and the U.S. base price will go to $109,465. Optional items may include the 100-hp Rotax 912ULS engine ($3,250); the dolly system to help you maneuver the long-winged machine around a hangar ($1,500), or a golf bag or snow ski baggage tube ($1,660). Plenty of customers will want to investigate avionics choices. One complete package sells for a shade over $20,000 and includes a Becker 4201 radio; Becker transponder plus altitude encoder; the Grand Rapids S200 EFIS with moving map; GPS and graphic engine monitor; UMA altimeter and airspeed; and Garmin 496 GPS with Air Gizmo dock. If you don't want the whole glass panel package, you can buy just the Becker radio ($3,660 installed) and/or the Garmin 496 and Air Gizmo dock ($2,737). Urban Air USA notes these prices are valid as of February 17, 2008, and are subject to change at any time. The importer says the price will become fixed at the time of order confirmation. Since the euro continues its inexorable rise against the dollar, prices may have to be adjusted. Behind Urban Air USA Americans are right to have concerns about dealing with overseas suppliers. While it usually goes well, if problems arise, you need a U.S.-based advocate to correct the situation. For Urban Air USA, this is well solved. Behind the importer is Bostik Industries, LLC, a Melbourne, Florida, company formed and financed by Josef Bostik Sr. and managed by his son, Josef J. Bostik. I've known Joe Bostik for many years.We share a love of hang gliding and soaring flight, but Bostik is a far more accomplished pilot. He has earned multiple U.S. National Hang Gliding Champion titles and has recorded World Records. Today, he flies airliners, switching back and forth from hang gliders -- or the Lambadas - with ease. Before taking on the Urban Air importation, Bostik became an explosives expert because he also imports the Magnum airframe parachute systems made by people he knows in the Czech Republic. Competing with BRS parachutes, Bostik has done credibly well, increasing sales more than three times since he started importing the life-saving products. Born in Eastern Europe, Bostik maintains strong ties to the Czech Republic. Back in '83 he successfully escaped from then-communist Czechoslovakia. Even in the post-Communist era, Americans recall daring escape stories and here's one of them in our own aviation segment. Bostik has a civil engineering background, a BS in Science and Technology and a whole list of aviation credentials: Certified Flight Instructor, CFII, MEI, Glider, FE and LSA Repairman. He is an Experimental RV6A aircraft builder. As he speaks three languages fluently, he is a worthy intermediary between Lambada customers and the manufacturer in the Czech Republic. Current Lambada customers are full of positive comments, as evidenced by the following.You can read more on Urban Air USA's Website. "The new distributor Josef Bostik is absolutely terrific to work with," says Jonathan Braslow of Indio, California. "Josef Bostik|provided me with dependable service and follow-though. He does what he promises, when he promises. I am confident in dealing with him and recommend him without hesitation," reports Barry Young of Phoenix, Arizona. One enthusiast added a comment that completes this review of the soaring-capable Lambada. "There is no better way to go from 'roar to soar' than in a Lambada," exclaims Randy Newberry of Bland, Virginia. To know if a Lambada is right for you, the next step is easy. Call Jim Lee, the easy-going, low-key sales director for Urban Air USA. He's another champion soaring pilot whom I've known for many years. You'll like talking to him. He can also demo the Lambada beautifully.