Eye On the Sky Watch

There was a time when a company called Beaver RX Enterprises – which produced the Canadian Beaver designs – was among the leading North American ultralight manufacturers.

In particular, the Beaver 550 tandem 2-seater attracted many customers. The company once claimed more than 3,500 ultralights flying. Certainly the model dominated the western Canadian market but also had a presence in the U.S. and other countries.

The old Beaver RX Enterprises company went through a number of leadership changes and, driven by overly-ambitious management goals, finally succumbed.

When I visited the now defunct company, the firm was a publicly-held corporation listed on the Vancouver Stock Exchange. Even the stock exchange has experienced a transformation, so perhaps it isn’t surprising that Beaver RX Enterprises also lost its heading.

As we’ve seen with other good designs, however – such as Quicksilvers, Phantoms or Drifters – the better ultralights can outlast their ownership. The Beaver line is among those survivors.

Today, the Beaver RX-550 is produced by fellow Canadians at ASAP (also producer of the Chinook Plus 2). The Beaver RX-650 has a new owner – Freedom Lite – and they’ve rechristened the 650 as the SkyWatch SS-11.

The principal behind the reinvigorated bird is Rob McIntosh. He acquired the design in 1993 after the original company delivered 47 units. Ironically, the 650 found its greatest success out of Canada with many sales going to Japan and others to Germany, Norway and South Africa.

Though the SkyWatch certainly derives from the RX-650, it isn’t exactly the same. In fact, McIntosh says they made 186 significant changes, such as creating a true one-man folding wing system. A never-designed-before float system is also underway as 1998 starts.

The folding wing (and tail) system – preferred by nearly every SkyWatch buyer so far – is indeed slick.

Similar to Kolb, the SkyWatch wing uses a beefy 5-inch spar with aluminum ribs. This stout structure permits a single 2-inch lift strut which on the SkyWatch is not disconnected for folding. In fact, the struts are designed to continue supporting the wing even while folded. The procedure takes only one person and can be finished in a few minutes.

Handsome Execution

McIntosh and his crew did a fine job of assembling their primary factory showplane. The finish work inside was very nice, and the fiberglass work looked excellent.

In my test flying of the SkyWatch, Jim Armstrong was my passenger. He helped to build this plane but didn’t want to be pilot-in-command. He handed that duty to me. I treated him as a “student” in the rear seat which helped assure a fair check of the SkyWatch as a 2-seater.

The “student” scenario was familiar and comfortable. When I visited the old Beaver RX Enterprises factory in Vancouver (McIntosh has since moved the company east to Ontario), I flew a lot of dual in the 650.

My initial reaction revealed that the SkyWatch – like its similar predecessor, the Beaver 650 – works very well for 2-seat operations. Considering I am not a huge fan of 2-seaters that often have ponderous handling and uninspiring performance, the SkyWatch behaved as though it was designed for the weight.

In some ways, the Beaver 650 compares closely to Quicksilver’s GT 500. Both were follow-ons to prior designs. The GT 400 single-seater came first as did Beaver’s 550 2-seater and 35 single-seater. As such, the successor models benefitted from experience with the earlier models and in both cases, a team of engineers pursued a professional course of design for the newer birds.

When I visited the old Vancouver operation that built the Beaver line, I saw several credentialed engineers working on high-powered CAD computers. Indeed, those engineers did not remain active with the task. Even during my visit, some designers had been diverted to work on a very unique and innovative home heating system that apparently never revolutionized that industry like some brokers expected. Fascinating as this project was, it had little to do with the Beaver ultralights and illustrated the wandering focus of the company.

Clear from the start, boss Rob McIntosh is in the dairy farming equipment business. His enterprise has several CNC machines, including lathes, mills and even CNC benders. These expensive pieces of machinery aren’t for the ultralight business though the SkyWatch benefits from such infrastructure.

A one-time buyer of a BRX-650 (as he remembers the model name), Rob’s interest in his ultralights was satisfied by starting production of the SkyWatch. The dairy enterprise may pay the bills, but Rob has devoted years to bringing this ultralight to market. Now it’s available as the SkyWatch.

Spacious Cabin

My flight opportunity with Freedom Lite’s ultralight came in April, 1997 in good old warm and sunny Florida. It was hot in the SkyWatch, fully enclosed as it was and surrounded by heat-transferring Lexan. Fortunately though, the design can be flown without doors which I would have greatly enjoyed in the temperate southern state.

In an interesting reversal, I’d flown the Beaver 650 in Canada before they developed the side panels and doors. I’d always sat in the front seat and found the wind protection quite complete even without side enclosures. I doubt the rear was as friendly but my fellow traveler, Dennis Maland, was uncomplaining – or perhaps he was just one tough Canadian.

The doors made entry more challenging but you’d sure appreciate them in the northern climates or on longer cross-country flights where the wind can wear you down. Entry is a matter of weaving around the welded structure. In the front, you must lean aft while lowering yourself to the seat by hanging on to the steel inner framework. It proved simple enough when you knew the trick. The front seat can be adjusted through 9 fore-and-aft positions to optimize flight trim and to accommodate differing sizes of pilots (great for students who change size).

Entry to the rear seat looked somewhat more straightforward than the front in a change from typical tandem 2-seaters that often ask the rear occupant to become a contortionist.

The SkyWatch, again just like the RX-650 I remember well, is loaded very lightly on the nose. This quality is enough so that even with two of us in it, the ultralight could tilt back on the tail. While a tailwheel on this tri-gear design makes this uneventful, the rear wheel isn’t steerable. You lose traction at the nose when this happens, meaning you must taxi more carefully.

Fortunately, the Hegar hydraulic brakes worked very well. A touch of the twin levers would bring the SkyWatch back on her nosewheel and steering returned quickly.

I like the brake system a lot. Freedom Lite asks $680 for it but it works effectively, is convenient to reach (just left of your left thigh), and it brings extra directional control. Two matching levers are closely positioned (like throttles on twin-engined aircraft) so you can twist your hand and apply more braking to one side. You could quickly become spoiled by such a deluxe system (and I guess it helps prove the old adage that “you get what you pay for”).

After a little practice, Armstrong and I were anxious to get airborne (partly to get more airflow through vents that always seem too small during taxi).

Eyes To the Sky

The SkyWatch comes standard with the 50-hp Rotax 503 dual carb engine. Indeed I’d flown that powerplant in my experience with the early production RX-650. It may be true that the 503 is the best loved engine in Rotax’s line, but the SkyWatch appeared to benefit from the more potent 66-hp Rotax 582 model Freedom Lite had installed on our test model.

Acceleration still couldn’t be called brisk, but we left the ground quickly enough despite Florida’s heat and humidity. The SkyWatch wanted to climb out at 55 mph. That’s also where she wants to be for landing. Add 10% to the old “50-is-nifty” rule and you’ll be rewarded by very straightforward launch and landing qualities.

Landings went well with the SkyWatch floating quite easily. In fact, the SkyWatch floats in ground effect better than I can hardly believe. I had one landing I thought would be hard and it turned out smooth as silk thanks to good ground effect characteristics. The ultralight retains energy right above the deck wonderfully well, though this may be because I approached a little hotter than optimal.

Nonetheless, all of my landings were great. This is an excellent recommendation for anyone considering the SkyWatch as a trainer.

Another endearing quality of the SkyWatch for training applications – or for anyone who prefers milder characteristics – is the handling feel. The SkyWatch delivers plenty of response from its two-thirds span ailerons, but no one would describe roll or yaw as fast.

Yet even in slightly rough conditions, I always felt master of the ship. In particular, crosswinds presented no real challenge and steep turns went well with plenty of back range. All around, the SkyWatch has lots of cabin room (to allow broad stick and rudder movements), and control range in all axes is excellent.

At 420 pounds empty weight – well below the 496-pound FAA training exemption weight – the SkyWatch seems to prefer the Rotax 582 engine over the standard Rotax 503. It yields some reserve of energy.

I found I was able to cruise about 5,200 rpm to produce 60-65 mph according to installed instruments. (The ASI may have read high as I showed stall close at 38 to 40 mph while Freedom Lite lists stall at 29 mph.)

Those many qualified engineers chose their airfoil right, I think. My timed descent rate checks showed close to 450 fpm. For a larger ultralight that was loaded nearly to gross, I found this quite a relaxed rate of descent. One day, it might help you relax should the Rotax give up the ghost.

My climb measurements brought about 700 fpm indicated. Both descent and climb estimates were taken dual.

Another advantage to well-engineered aircraft comes when it is time for a stall and stability series of evaluations. Stalls were about 38-39 mph and were very mild both power-on or -off. Power-on stalls just didn’t happen while power-off ones broke a little but not badly at all. A designer from another company told me the use of a big blunt leading edge probably accounts for the good stall. Here’s another similarity to the Quicksilver GT 500 design.

At one point in the longitudinal stability tests, I thought I encountered a little pitch weirdness. It made me a shade uncomfortable. I experienced a kind of “momentum” in pitch though I later concluded I was simply overcontrolling an aircraft with light pitch forces.

My tape-recorded notes reflected, “The pitch is definitely a little strange. It feels like it could get away from you.”

Hmmm? However, I also recorded, “Yet based on the good stall characteristics, perhaps this is just a type of ‘stick shaker’ and not really a problem.” McIntosh confirmed my impression saying they had changed the linkage of the joystick somewhat. Since I flew the SkyWatch, the stick moves more to do less, which is another way of saying they dampened a rather lightly pitched design. I think they made a good decision. Rob said he reacted to the advice of several pilots who felt it was too light in pitch.

Watch Your Own?

Freedom Lite hired an independent safety inspector to do a structural analysis on the SkyWatch. This followed an in-house finite analysis. In all, Freedom Lite did a lot of work on an ultralight that had already been designed and sold by another company.

Sales have been modest so far with 15 delivered since the plane’s introduction in April,1996. “We’re poor marketers,” said McIntosh, but he sounds like a busy man with an active dairy business to manage.

Another reason for the low volume could be a pretty hefty price tag, up in the mid-$20s, depending a lot on options you select. The base model, which comes with a Rotax 503, retails in U.S. dollars for just under $18,000. That doesn’t stop pilots from adding thousands of dollars more in options.

The most desired options include the folding wing setup at $629. Fourteen of the 15 SkyWatches delivered have this popular extra-cost item. You should also consider the brakes even though they’re $680, and most pilots have wanted the electric starter kit with battery box, battery and electrical connections for $958. If you want the 582 engine system, the price tag is $19,976 and the now-available 75-hp Rotax 618 increases the total by $980 more.(The numbers are converted from Canadian dollars, explaining the odd amounts.)

It adds up to an average price near $25,000 says McIntosh. However, you get a lot for the money. Besides the totally CNC-run manufacturing (which makes accurate parts that fit well), the SkyWatch comes complete with that entire interior treatment that hides all the control linkages. And you get the significant value of Canadian certification.

One example of this asset is fuel cells. Not mere tanks, Freedom Lite had to certify that their cells wouldn’t cause a pilot injury in a crash. McIntosh indicated the test was simple enough, but it took time and naturally, they had to design the fuel cell in the first place| one of the 186 changes, I guess.

SkyWatch is a big beautiful airplane in the ultralight class. Rob wants to keep it light and has worked toward that end wherever possible. Nonetheless, she’s a lot of plane. Big fellows, school operations and other “heavy” users can find a resource in the ultralight from the open plains of Canada.

I found McIntosh to be a genuine individual, a serious businessman and an enthusiastic SkyWatch pilot. I suggest you look him up at the next airshow you attend. A conversation with him and a close look at the SkyWatch may make you want one of your own.