The Tanarg: Most Deluxe Trike Ever?

CONTROLLED CARBS – The Tanarg uses a sophisticated liquid-cooling system to control carburetor heat. Jean-Luc Tilloy points out the lines for this system.

STORAGE AND/OR CHUTE – Air Création provides several storage areas in the Tanarg and this body cavity is one. It can hold cargo or you can install a parachute here. Both may be a possibility, but you’ll want to watch total weight.

IMPORTANT WINGNUTS – These two finger-secured bolts (one is shown being tightened) serve to assure the mast is fully erected. Panel light shows if these are not snug.

TANARG CUTAWAY – The Tanarg’s primary mast structure is chromoly steel, as are the seat structures. The front fork is made of aluminum, as is the main shock-absorbing landing gear strut (the one on the angle). – Artwork courtesy of Air Création

FOLD-DOWN – The hassle of lifting the wing on a trike is history on the Tanarg. Underneath the forward support of the rear seat is the fulcrum point where the wing mast now hinges. When the wing is lifted, the trike doesn’t roll. – Artwork courtesy of Air Création

ROCKET BODY – Like “Pocket Rocket” motorcycles, the Tanarg makes good use of dramatically shaped composite shells over steel structure.

ROOMY PANEL – The Tanarg provides plenty of space for instruments, shown here with several “steam gauges.” Note the radio placement just below the panel where a bracket is mounted for such use.

BURIED BATTERY – The electrical system battery is tucked neatly behind the front seat, which also places this weight forward on the chassis.

SIMPLE STORAGE – The Tanarg has many clever storage areas. This bag occupies the rear seat when the trike is flown solo (as is commonly the case with most 2-seat aircraft).

ADJUSTABLE FRONT FORK – The Tanarg accommodates occupants of various sizes well; this view shows the rudder pedal position adjustment lever. Also note the large, secure foot pedals; the right pedal shown also operates the foot throttle.

SIMPLE RIG – In the front seat is Gilles Bru, primary designer of the Tanarg (and most other Air Création machines). Seated behind him is Sales Manager Jean-Luc Tilloy. Both men have been attending U.S. airshows for years and they know the American market.

HIDDEN WIRES – The radio antenna wire can barely be seen because it’s hidden under the fabric fairing covering the horizontal landing gear leg. This view shows the antenna by the wheel pant with electrical wire exposed under the fairing.

FUEL RIGHT – All routing of fuel lines are to the right side of the chassis to separate them from the electrical lines. Note the sight gauge for fuel quantity. Air Création planned to mark this for quantity level.

ELECTRICAL LEFT – All routing of electrical lines are to the left side of the chassis to separate them from the fuel lines for safety’s sake. This view also shows the instructor’s protected kill switch.

STASH PLACE – Behind the rear seat back is one of several storage places provide in the Tanarg. Note the front seat has the same location.

REAR ADJUSTMENT – It’s uncommon for trikes to have rear steerable pedals but no others that I’m aware of also feature adjustment like the Tanarg. Note the secure clip lying on the floor while the rotating adjuster “gears” are visible.

When Air Création introduced their beautiful Tanarg trike to American pilots in 2005, it earned a very warm response and, at the same time, shock at its $53,000 price tag – some $10,000 more than the next closest high-end trike.
Pronounced Tan-ARG (rhyme it with “barge,” except the G is said softly, more like TAN-arz), the machine is impressive. Even for those pilots or newcomers who regard weight-shift control trikes as “weird,” or “hard to understand,” the Tanarg design concept earns respect rapidly. This aircraft has received enormous attention to detail while also gaining in strength and ease of use. Air Création engineers built on many successful years of designing and producing lots of trikes – some 2,500 of them – to create a stunning work of aeronautical art. Nothing on the market is quite like the Tanarg.

The last time I wrote about Air Création, I talked about my experience with their wonderful new iXess wing (once again introducing a hard-to-pronounce name). Our subject aircraft this month is the Tanarg (chassis) and iXess (wing). Since I’ve written about the wing in UltralightFlying! magazine’s December ’04 issue, this article will focus on the new carriage, and how well it works with the iXess wing.

Where to Start?
The Tanarg is a new trike in every way. Every part of it is so completely different than any earlier Air Création trike that it’s tough to know where to start. I asked lead designer Gilles Bru to show me around his creation. He kindly pointed out many new features, in great detail.

The whole carriage sits a little lower to the ground, which adds to its ground stability. The longer wheelbase also aids stability, and the nosewheel is somewhat extended compared to earlier Air Création trikes.
When I asked how this chassis affects the in-flight feel, Bru observed that airborne changes of power no longer change the carriage position to the wing because the thrust line is superior to earlier models. Some trikes require careful use of power so as not to get the carriage swinging – something like the pendulum effect possible under a powered parachute canopy.
As with the iXess wing before it, the Tanarg was four years in development. When you try to refine the state of an art, which has advanced considerably, you must truly stretch your design vision. Doing so takes time, even for experts like Bru.

The Tanarg’s primary mast structure is chromoly steel, which is then painted to reduce the chance of corrosion. However, the front fork is still made of aluminum, as is the main shock-absorbing landing gear strut (the one on the angle). While steel is appropriate for areas needing great strength, aluminum will always survive on aircraft for its light weight and corrosion resistance. The steel portions of the Tanarg include the mast and seat structure, but not the forward support tube.
The horizontal gear fairing has a smooth look through a fabric cover. I would not have expected a fabric fairing on a deluxe vehicle like the Tanarg, but this material is light and does the job while also easing inspection.
What grabbed my attention right away was the Tanarg’s extensive body fairing, which is just like the most radical “pocket rocket” motorcy

cles. It’s a look that sells and will redefine how trikes are built.
Remarkably, Bru reports all the changes to the Tanarg add only 5 kilos (11 pounds) to the also-deluxe (and still-in-production) Clipper chassis. Such a small weight bump is quite astonishing when you consider how many changes have been made, and how robust the entire assembly is.
Easy Up

Have you ever watched a trike pilot set up his aircraft from a small trailer or the back of a pickup truck? A fairly small package transforms to a full aircraft as a chrysalis turns into a butterfly. But when this happens an awkward moment often arrives when the setup calls for another person to help brace the trike (some pilots use chocks for this purpose).
On most other trikes, lifting the wing pushes aft on the main gear, so you have to chock them to keep the trike from rolling. That hassle is history on the Tanarg. Underneath the forward support of the rear seat is the fulcrum point where the wing mast now hinges. Bru says, “When you lift the wing, the trike does not roll.” He assured me that one person could also erect the wing easily – no small feat for a 100-pound wing raised several feet into the air.
The Aquilair Swing used a similar system back in the early 2000s, but Air Création has taken the concept further. The Tanarg also reflects a more modern appearance than the Swing, which now looks somewhat boxy in comparison.

It may first seem a nit-picking detail but Air Création went to some length to separate electrical and fuel lines on the Tanarg for safety’s sake.
All electrical wiring is routed down the left side of the chassis. An aft-seat kill switch is just under the instructor’s left knee. The main switch is on the panel. Both are protected switches.
All fuel lines are routed down the right side of the chassis to separate them from the electrical. The choke is opposite the instructor’s kill switch, under his right knee. Fuel filters are on the same side as is the sight gauge for the fuel tank, which the factory will mark with quantity levels. The new trike chassis holds 65 liters of fuel (17.2 gallons).

The Tanarg throttles have also been changed. The hand throttle is now push/pull just like a conventional aircraft throttle. The foot throttle remains part of the beefy and comfortable foot pedal.
Carburetor heat is controlled by a liquid cooling system so that it does not require any pilot input.
The Tanarg’s battery is located aft of the front seat. When you lift out the rear seat, a zippered pouch is provided to hold your aircraft documents.

Two pins secure the location of the mast when fully erected. These pins must be in place securely, or a panel light will light up to show the incomplete assembly.
For radio-equipped Tanargs, the antenna is located by the right wheel pant, the connecting cable for which is hidden inside the fabric covering over the horizontal gear leg.
Greater Occupant Comfort

Trikes remain open-cockpit aircraft and as a trike enthusiast, I wouldn’t have it any other way. So, although you’ll want to invest in a comfortable, protective full-face helmet to go with your Tanarg, the French company also knows you want to be comfortable and well served.
Commensurately, cabin comfort has received attention, as has adjustability.
The rear seat no longer requires a climb for entry. You can turn around and sit down on it and push the front seat forward to swing your legs over. The seat back angle can change, rather like an airline seat, moving back and forth a few inches. You can also tension the seat side panels that can enhance your secure feel in the seat, much like adjustable bolsters in some high-end sports cars.

The Tanarg accommodates occupants of various sizes in more ways than seat adjustments. Using a threaded, overcenter lever, you can move the pedals fore and aft over a range to accommodate taller or shorter pilots. Rear pedals also adjust after you remove a collar pin that unlocks the fit into some gears, which permits each pedal to be separately adjusted within a range via rotation.
Trikes have sometimes been faulted for having no cargo or baggage capacity. Air Création heard those comments and added many such areas in the Tanarg. Storage areas include: a map pocket holder on the back of each seat; storage areas on either side of the pilot’s legs, right at the step-in point; an add-on bag can be used when the trike is flown solo (as are most 2-seat machines most of the time); and, a not-accessible-in-flight space under the seat frame is available unless you choose to fill this space with an optional emergency parachute.
In earlier Air Création trikes, the rear seat was folded to make better support for the front seat back when flown solo. Now the new storage bag serves this purpose so you gain space, and also better support.

Once seated and after the surroundings exploration was done, I fired up the powerful 81-hp Rotax 912 engine and began taxiing out for takeoff. I found a very well suspended ride in the Tanarg and felt almost no engine vibration.
The nosewheel steering is no longer part of the front fork assembly where your actions are very direct. Now the linkage is part of the main airframe, which permits the above-described rudder pedal fore and aft adjustment via a friction-type clamp that requires no tools.
The nosewheel construction is a leading link such that when you hit the brake it does not compress and nose down somewhat. However, brakes aren’t limited to the nosewheel as in most trikes. Hydraulic brakes are fitted to all three wheels and larger tires, giving the Tanarg impressive slowing and stopping power. Two hydraulic cylinders allow the front and rear brake systems to be adjusted separately.

Two Wings, One Chassis
Air Création made the Tanarg available with two wings, an older but easier handling Kiss wing that I’ve enjoyed before and the newer, still remarkably easy handling iXess wing. You may also fly the Tanarg with the Fun 450 or the iXess Training model, though I didn’t fly those wings on this trike chassis.
One-handed flying proved to be easy on the Kiss wing attached to the Tanarg. For me, this wing might be my choice as I prize lighter handling. But the iXess wing is still adequately easy and offers a higher top speed. If you plan to go cross-country often in your Tanarg – something it accomplishes very well – then the iXess wing should be your choice. If you fly locally most of the time, the Kiss may be your sweetheart.

Both wings have the trimmer system, and adjustability in the trim remains very convincing. Hands off, idle thrust speed in the iXess with the trimmer turned to each limit went from 65 to 85 km/h (41-53 mph).
Earlier, Bru suggested that I take off and land with the trimmer in the zero position. The rabbit-and-turtle graphical label for trimmer applications (faster or slower) can be understood in any language, appropriate for a company that sells all around the world.
Setting the trimmer to neutral may also be useful to help contain that big engine driving you into the air. I flew solo and after the first launch, I never used more than about 60% power to get aloft. I can envision high elevation sites where 80 hp may be necessary. Two-place flying with big American occupants could be another reason, but when flying solo I would rarely expect to use more than a little over half that power reserve.

Since the trimmer results in a repositioning of the control bar, I found the handling was actually better when the trim was set to high speed as this meant I did not need to pull aft on the bar with as much effort; it was already further aft. When the trim was set slow, I had to pull aft to help accelerate into the turn. This is probably why Bru encouraged me to approach for landing in the neutral trim position, to facilitate better control.
On tailless wing trikes, conventional trim has no surface (an elevator) on which to exert influence, and you can’t use a stick reposition system like a Quicksilver ultralight or Sonex homebuilt. Trikes use a series of luff lines or pitch lines that hold up the trailing edge when the rest of the wing draws tighter, or forward. Like regular trim, this is sufficiently subtle that you might not see the trailing edge movement, but you’ll notice the relief on the control bar.
The new iXess wing is only made in a single size, thanks to its versatility, yet the Air Création trimmer system extends usable speed range.

Despite the differences in wing membrane construction, the same airframe structure is used inside the Kiss, iXess, and Fun wings, though each wing is significantly different from the others. This design move simplifies the effort of manufacturing as well as making it easier for dealers to have parts on hand. Delta wing airframes are important, certainly, but the larger share of what makes the wing work is the sail cut, rib patterns, and numerous refinements that seek to improve handling and speed range.
On the more sophisticated iXess wing, the entire top surface of the sail is made from Trilam because it’s a better match to higher speed. The iXess also has a cloth doubler on the trailing edge due to stress from a tautly stretched wing. This added construction step is not needed on the Fun 450, which employs much less trailing edge tension
To help maintain the fine handling of the Kiss wing, a portion of the iXess undersurface uses spinnaker cloth, a modestly lighter cloth with more flexibility. The more malleable cloth keeps the relationship between upper and lower surfaces more elastic to help with handling and low-speed flight characteristics. The concentration of spinnaker cloth is at midspan where it can do the most good.

I found the iXess wing to have an indicated range of about 50 to 140 km/h (31-88 mph) dual or solo – a respectable three-times range of speeds. Maximum dive speed with no power in the Tanarg 912 indicated 72-75 mph when the trimmer was left in the neutral position. Compared to most trikes, this is speedy, though it’s no match for modern fixed-wing light-sport aircraft.
During assembly or derigging, you realize what it takes to make a foldable membrane wing like iXess. The design uses nine lower ribs, with somewhat wider spacing at the tip to allow more shifting of the wing for improved handling – the way the sail and airframe move relative to one another is what allows a delta wing to respond so well to weight-shift control inputs. The upper surface of the iXess has 13 ribs to maintain a precise airfoil shape. In all, 44 ribs go into the iXess wing.
All this attention to careful wing design allows Air Création to claim competition wins with the iXess wing: First-place wing at the 2001 World Championships, a feat repeated at the 2002 European Championships – all while the wing was still in development.
The Tanarg 912 with the iXess wing climbs so strongly on takeoff that you’ll only use full power if you are heavier with two people, flying heavy at high elevations, or when flying off floats (the company also offers a float kit).
Not only did I observe a smooth ride on the ground, both Tanarg models I flew impressed me with the very low amount of vibration you feel in the seat. To me, this was one of the most convincing qualities assuring this new trike chassis was designed for longer flights.
Air Création has long offered recoil 3-position pilot restraints in both seating positions. And while neither Tanarg model was equipped with a ballistic parachute, the company sells so many of them that they are one of a few companies to develop and incorporate an automatic engine kill switch into the rocket motor’s pull handle. In Air Création’s case this was done in cooperation with BRS engineers to assure proper execution.
For those wanting a parachute, Air Création has worked with BRS to create a bracket that comes standard with all Tanarg trikes. The BRS rocket motor will exit on the left side of the Tanarg fuselage.
Are You a “Trike Person”?
If you haven’t already tried trikes, the Tanarg is one you should experience. You may not wish to spend the money on this top-of-the-line model, but it will give such a good ride and flight that it might change your mind about the potential of weight-shift aircraft.
Now that two Air Création trikes – the Tanarg 912 and GTE 912 – plus one AirBorne trike have achieved Special Light-Sport Aircraft status, these “unusual” aircraft must be welcomed at any airport accepting federal funds for their development or upkeep.
The Tanarg is in every way a very deluxe aircraft truly deserving of another look by those who may cast a doubtful eye on weight-shift flying machines.
I recommend contacting the company’s U.S. representative, Air Création USA, and finding the nearest place to get a test flight. You might want to travel to this facility in the Phoenix, Arizona, area. Not only can you access the entire line of Air Création trikes but you can get lessons seven days a week. And, if you’re really lucky (and have the wallet for it), you should try to enlist in one of the company’s “Aero-Trekking” adventures.