I once followed judging at shows like AirVenture and Sun ‘n Fun. In fact, an aircraft I helped inspire — a modernized primary glider called the SuperFloater — won Outstanding New Design at Sun ‘n Fun 1995. Judges closely examined homebuilts, kit or restored vintage airplanes, and warbirds. If they included factory built aircraft, I was not aware of it. *** So, this year I admitted surprise after learning factory-built Light-Sport Aircraft won awards. *** To honor the hundreds or thousands of hours people put into their winners, I want to highlight some LSA and ultralights that judges liked. The Grand Champion LSA was Wayne Spring’s 2010 Predator powered parachute; Reserve Grand Champ was James Jonannes’ 2009 Arion Lightning LS-1; Grand Champion Ultralight was James Wiebe’s 2010 Belite Superlite; and, Reserve Grand Champ was Danny Dezauche’s 2010 CGS Hawk Ultra.
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CubCrafters All-New Sport Cub
Vintage Looks Mated With Modern Materials
Take 25 years of experience
with rebuilding Piper Cubs,
add a new FAA regulation
allowing more flexibility in designing
and producing aircraft, spice the
mixture with many design changes,
and you get CubCrafters’ Sport Cub.
The Yakima, Washington-based company
has created an airplane that retains
the vintage look of a J-3 Cub
but embraces 21st century materials
and technology.
On a warm evening during
the Sun ‘n Fun Fly-In
at Lakeland, Florida, I
flew with CubCrafters’
pilot Clay Hammond. He
identified company President
Jim Richmond as the primary
motivator behind the Sport Cub.
Richmond has been rebuilding Cubs
for 25 years, during which time he
conceived many changes he wanted
to try. Taking into consideration his
height-he’s 6 feet 4 inches tall-he
wanted to make all the improvements
he’d envisioned for the venerable
Cub, and he wanted the airplane
to fit him.
A Thoroughly Modern Cub
CubCrafters took on the redesign
of the 50-year-old airplane using
modern materials and engineering
software not available to Piper engineers
when the J-3 was created.
Beaver RX-550
Perhaps the most famous ultralight to come out of Canada is the Beaver. With a reported 2,200 units flying since the early 1980s, this is one of the most successful light aircraft ever. However, due to missteps by companies that previously manufactured the brand, this popular ultralight was nearly lost from the ultralight aviation landscape. Were it not for the Aircraft Sales and Parts (ASAP) company and the Holomis family, you might not have this choice today.
Originally the Beaver RX-550 came from a company called Spectrum Aircraft. A company reorganization left the ultralight in the hands of a company named Beaver RX Enterprises. Both these business names disappeared and today the ASAP brand carries the Beaver into the sky.
In 1993, a couple years after our last report on the Beaver1, the old company closed its doors and effectively stranded thousands of Beaver ultralight owners and all the dealerships that sold them.
Legend is First Cub to Sport a Jabiru Engine
Legend Aircraft‘s Cub is one of the top selling SLSA, ranking up high with Flight Design’s CT, Fantasy Air’s Allegro, Evektor’s SportStar, and TL Ultralight’s StingSport. Both American-made Cub-like designs (Legend’s and CubCrafters‘) have been 100% Continental O-200 powered because that engine is close to what was used in the original Piper J-3 Cub, which has driven demand from customers attracted to the vintage aircraft. However, the Cubs have higher empty weights than many of their smaller metal or composite competitors — CT and StingSport, being primarily carbon fiber airframes, weigh in almost 200 pounds lighter, for example. So, when operating at higher elevations or on floats, reported Legend staffer Pat Bowers, some owners felt more power would be useful. For several weeks the Sulphur Springs, Texas factory worked to install the Jabiru 3300. The six cylinder engine is 35 pounds lighter and has 20 more horsepower, a combination said to provided spirited performance.
Simple Sprint Pleasures
Excelling at “Just For Fun”
Going back to our roots and the dandy little ultralights that have given in-flight satisfaction to so many, we’re going to take a look at one of those aircraft, Quicksilver’s MX Sprint.
Some veteran pilots call the MX Sprint “humble,” but it is one of those “original” ultralight aircraft that simply won’t go away, and it shouldn’t. Why? Because the Sprint still offers a joyful flying experience that redefines boring holes in the sky. You pilot a Sprint in relative ease and at remarkable low cost, and once price enters the discussion, many ultralights show their value clearly.
Many in light-sport aviation are realizing that aircraft certified Experimental Light-Sport Aircraft (ELSA) and Special Light-Sport Aircraft (SLSAs), even when approved under a simplified, industry-created, ASTM-guided program, will be rather expensive aircraft. Some sleek fiberglass creations are reaching toward the six-figure mark – an unbelievable development given that ultralights have historically traded in a range of $8,000 to $35,000, the latter being a superbly equipped, Rotax 912-powered machine.
It’s a Winner; CGS Hawk Sport
Given Chuck Slusarczyk’s decades in recreational aviation, I imagine almost everyone in ultralight aviation has heard of the funny, Polish-speaking pioneer with the hard-to-pronounce last name (Slew-Sar-Chick). If Chuck had named his first business Slusarczyk Glider Supplies, pilots would have stumbled and renamed it for him. Knowing his name is a tongue twister, he wisely called it Chuck’s Glider Supplies.
In his early business years, when Chuck was younger and slimmer, he made hang gliders. Lots and lots of hang gliders. I flew one, as did thousands of others. He was one of a handful of east-of-the-Mississippi hang glider manufacturers. Being a long way from the West Coast where hang gliding was centered back in the ’70s, Chuck made the Californians nervous. They couldn’t keep an eye on his developments and he was regarded as unpredictable. Those who knew him thought the word should be innovative.
Then came powered hang gliding, such as it was in those days.
IndUS – Thorpedo
All Revved and Everywhere to Go
This vintage design with a big Jabiru engine is an impressive performer.
Since its reintroduction to the aviation community by IndUS Aviation, John Thorp’s T-211 is generating more attention than at any time since he first designed the airplane.
While John worked on large aircraft, like the Navy patrol bomber P2V Neptune, he focused most of his career on small, sporty aircraft. He began designing a two-place light aircraft in the 1930s. By the 1950s his T-10 Sky Skooter powered by a 50-hp Franklin 2AC-99 engine evolved into the T-111 with a 75-hp Lycoming engine. Later it became the T-211, with a Continental O-200. It is this last version of the T-211 that IndUS now offers as a standard category aircraft. IndUS is also planning to offer the model as a light-sport aircraft (LSA) with a Jabiru 3300 engine, affectionately named the Thorpedo for its improved performance.
Product Lines – June 1995
ST. PAUL, MINN. — In April, USHGA continued what is now something of a tradition by having a strong presence at the massive Sun ‘n Fun airshow, one of the ways we can reach out to other potential new members. The Florida extravaganza has been closing on the world’s largest airshow — Oshkosh — and in 1995 nearly tied the big Wisconsin event for attendance. These conventions are the largest gatherings of pilots in the world, and I think it’s terrific hang gliding is represented. Even if you’re one of those who don’t desire growth, we need to be recognized among the greater community of pilots, if for no other reason than having some clout and contacts when one of our flying sites is threatened. ••• As if to show the effort is paying off, UNpowered ultralights were recognized in several significant ways this year. • A window was created daily to allow one hour of solely unpowered flying.
Hawk looks Good in Wood!
Not all Light-Sport Aircraft will be composite.
Beautiful imported aircraft like the CT2K, Mirage, Jabiru, or Kolb Sport seem to best represent what many pilots imagine when they hear the words “light-sport aircraft.” These shapely composite designs are speedy and modern looking. Yet we’d be foolish to ignore the entire fleet of amateur-built light-sport aircraft (LSA) candidates. One of these is Fisher Flying Products’ Dakota Hawk.
Wood Still Works!
The Dakota Hawk is a simple, wood-structure light aircraft covered in fabric. Sound familiar? Sound comfortable and well understood? You bet it does.
While the Dakota Hawk may not be seen as a “modern” design, neither is it a vintage aircraft like Fisher’s fascinating Tiger Moth replica. Instead, most pilots probably link the Dakota Hawk to a golden era of general aviation when Piper Cubs, Taylorcrafts, and Luscombes were the darlings of light flight.
Regardless of what regulatory program it operates under, this high-wing taildragger is a sweet flier that will address what many pilots want out of aviation.
Wings and Strings 2000
Admirers of aviation and music convene at this annual Florida event.
Naturally, pilots have interests besides airplanes. I’d bet all fliers enjoy one kind or another of music. Hang glider pilots occasionally fly with a portable CD player at sites such as Torrey Pines near San Diego. The California glider port shared jointly by sailplanes, hang gliders, paragliders, and RC models offers butter-smooth ridge lift. The gentle sea breezes make for such mellow conditions that some say music complements the flying.
Yet most pilots are too busy with controls and instruments, are concentrating too hard on navigation, or are simply too engrossed in the joy of flying to want music aloft. CD players in homebuilts or factory aircraft are hardly commonplace. But another way to indulge your musical and aviation interests is to visit Florida’s Fantasy of Flight tourist attraction on the occasion of the annual Wings & Strings Americana Music Festival.
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