Yes, Airventure fans, it’s been fair, mild, low humidity, refreshing, beautiful weather…all descriptors none of us is used to using in the same sentence with the words Oshkosh and summer. *** It’s been a delight not to drop with exhaustion at the end of a long day slogging around the miles of paths and thousands of exhibits, planes and aviation sundry. *** Here’s some more cool stuff from my travels across the great cement/grass/asphalt immensity known simply as “Oshkosh.”
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Tecnam Acquires Snap; Partners with SportairUSA
Snap! Crackle! Pop! It’s not just for breakfast anymore. Among the vast array of light aircraft I am only aware of a few other single seat models … Here’s a U.S. example (video) and here’s some European single seaters. None of these has yet gone through the process to become Special LSA but that might be changing now that Italian giant Tecnam acquired a, well … snappy little bird with a catchy name. Tecnam already has the broadest number of models in the LSA space but just to be sure of keeping this title, the company recently announced their new low wing Astore and now they follow with Snap.
Americans have seen Snap before, but Tecnam gives it much more market presence. Snap is a single seat, low wing, fixed landing gear aircraft with a high power-to-weight ratio and the capability to perform aerobatics with low operating costs.
Dragonfly 912 Becomes Newest SLSA #132
You might not be in the market for a super slow flying aircraft like Dragonfly that stalls at less than 20 mph. You might not care that Ed Pittman took the lead winning Special LSA approval on behalf of Australian businessman and hang gliding pioneer Bill Moyes and American Dragonfly designer Bobby Bailey. However, as a longtime hang gliding enthusiast, I can attest on behalf of many who enjoy soaring flight in hang gliders that Dragonfly is a critically important aircraft. The unusual aircraft was purpose designed to tow a hang glider aloft so it can be released — commonly at 2,000-2,500 feet and often right in a column of thermal lift — to allow it to achieve soaring flight without the benefit of a mountain from which to launch. One of the most successful aerotug airparks, called Wallaby Ranch, is located a few miles south of Disney World in Florida.
Still Expanding LSA Seaplane Development
“Isn’t it just a niche market?,” asked a reader in a recent email. The query came after he read about a flurry of new seaplanes and the writer wondered if it could be worth all the investment pouring in to these projects. Development progress in this particular sector-within-a-sector (LSA seaplanes) seems to be far outdistancing development in other parts of the aviation world. So, are efforts to develop increasingly sophisticated LSA seaplanes economically justifiable? It’s a worthy question. Another answer: “Well, why not?” An amphibious LSA seaplane can land on water or land, could fly as fast or nearly as fast as a land plane. They can look cleaner with gear that disappears. They already have another 110 pounds to work with (though admittedly much of that is needed simply to achieve an amphib seaplane and even that is not enough for all manufacturers). If you want an LSA, why not one that’s more versatile?
Dual GPS Is More Than a Panel Top Gizmo
Aviation has embraced tablet computers like iPad to an extent no one would have imagined only three years ago. These devices are being used for far more than showing a sectional map or approach plates. In fact, with companies like Tecnam supplying Apple’s iPad Mini as standard equipment in their new Astore LSA model, these tablets are serving as more than reference or information tools. They can now act as Primary Flight Displays. They can show weather and identify airborne traffic. I’m reasonably sure even the bright folks in Apple’s engineering department never foresaw such a use, but their iPads can be seen all over the aviation spectrum.
To make tablets like iPad or those running Android more functional, we began to rely on panel top devices. Tablets and smartphones weren’t designed to work aboard aircraft. One early leader with panel top gear was Dual Electronics, which formed an aviation division to market their capability.
Sophisticated LSA or “Mere Ultralight?”
I recently flew with a friend who has some interest in learning to fly. After we got out of a Flight Design CTLSi equipped with dual Dynon 10-inch SkyView screens flanking a Garmin 796 — in all, an awesome amount of beautifully presented information — my friend sighed and made a statement that he could probably never do what I’d just done. We’d gone aloft and I pointed out to him the marvels of synthetic vision, ADS-B traffic and weather, direct-to navigation that would take us straight home and so much more. No wonder he felt completely overwhelmed. I didn’t see it as overwhelming, of course. I delighted in all that easily accessed info and loved showing my friend just a few of the features available. However, on later reflection, I remembered the serious study that even an experienced pilot like myself had put into learning those magnificent digital instruments.
65 Years Later … Tecnam Astore Flies!
I just wrote about Van’s Aircraft, a 41-year-old company that just came out with their first ready-to-fly airplane. Now I want to talk about a 65-year-old company and a 65-year old airplane design, Astore. First came a 1948 Astore. Recently the 2013 Astore — just unveiled to the public last month at the Aero show — took to the air on its first flight. The Italian company showed again that they can take one of Professor Luigi’s new designs and achieve it in a remarkably short time. Head of Aircraft Design for Tecnam through the decades, Luigi Pascale will celebrate his 90th birthday later this year. As a young man he designed the first Astore and many more aircraft since. Yet this senior engineer seemingly doesn’t need a rest. Company Managing Director Paolo Pascale said of his uncle, “He is enjoying the design work … it keeps him alive!” Watch our
video interview with Paolo to hear more about the new model.
End of May 2013 LSA News Wrap
Single Seat Darling — Perhaps it’s because we haven’t had so many new SLSA offerings lately (though don’t look away too long as more are definitely on the way!). Maybe it’s because the new airplane is a single seater. Certainly we have not had many single seater SLSA … well, none so far, but that, too, is going to change with the Snap aerobatic aircraft and the electric-powered Yuneec eSpyder working on SLSA approval as one-place airplanes. It could be the low price tag. No question that a price under $60,000 for a ready-to-fly Special LSA is attractive. However, I’m always amazed at conventional aviation magazines droning on about the “high cost” of LSA when, in fact, we have many aircraft offered at below $100,000, several below $80,000, and a handful for even less the new SD-1 Minisport (and the other low-priced LSA are all two seaters).
Finishing Four Amazing Days at Aero 2013
Airplane Overload — Imagine a gymnasium, the full court kind where basketball is played. Imagine ten of them placed side by side. Big space, huh? Now imagine all of them filled to capacity with aircraft and airplane gear of every imaginable sort. Presto! You’ve got Aero Friedrichshafen. No wonder we go year after year (I think this was my tenth Aero and, for certain, I’m going again). In this wrap up post, I’ll provide a few more views of this truly excellent event. Good as my reporting hopefully is, however, true-blue aviation enthusiasts owe it to themselves to make the trip to the southern edge of Germany for this outstanding (nearly) all-indoor aviation extravaganza. I can find so many good reasons to like Aero, I’m sure you’d be pleased if you attend.
Final Facts and Videos — Aero Show Director Roland Bosch somehow made time in what must be an awesomely tight schedule to let us tape a video with him and his U.S.
Live From Sun ‘n Fun 2013
SuperStol: Able to leap tall RVs at a single bound. Drawing lots of attention is the Just Aircraft SuperStol LSA kitplane (soon to be an SLSA) that has self-deploying leading edge slats, oleo main gear shock-absorbing struts (with humongous tires), even a shock absorber for the tailwheel. I found out later I was the first flywriter to get some time in the critter. Whether true or not, I felt like a kid on his first flight again: what a fun airplane! True — and amazing — STOL performance befitting a Helio Courier-style plane. My report will be out soon in Plane & Pilot magazine.
It’s the third day at Sun ‘n Fun. Breezy, hottish (high 80s), humid: in other words, classic Florida Spring weather. The attendance seems steady if not overwhelming. I’ve been hanging out a lot in the new Paradise City Light Sport/Ultralight area and grass landing strip in the southeast corner of Lakeland Linder Airport, and enthusiastically report it is vastly improved over previous years.
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