54-599: The Jurca Gnatsum is a French homebuilt near scale replica aircraft based on the North American P-51 Mustang . The Gnatsum (Mustang spelled backwards) is one of many wooden homebuilt designs from Romanian designer Marcel Jurca . Jurca, a Henschel Hs 129 pilot in World War II, expanded his warbird replica designs to include the Allied North American P-51 Mustang fighter. The Gnatsum
108-812: A 340 hp (254 kW) version. Textron purchased the company in 1985. In 1994, Textron sold the Lycoming Turbine Engine Division, located in Stratford, Connecticut , to AlliedSignal , who merged it with the Garrett Engine Division of AlliedSignal as part of AlliedSignal Aerospace, later becoming part of Honeywell Aerospace in 1999. Textron retained piston engine production in Williamsport. Lycomings continue to power new light aircraft by fellow Textron division, Cessna Aircraft , and by Piper , Cirrus , Diamond , and others. Lycomings remain
162-603: A completed airframe, was the Baby Ace in the late 1920s. Homebuilt aircraft gained in popularity in the U.S. in 1924 with the start of the National Air Races , held in Dayton , Ohio . These races required aircraft with useful loads of 150 lb (68 kg) and engines of 80 cubic inches or less and as a consequence of the class limitations most were amateur-built. The years after Charles Lindbergh 's transatlantic flight brought
216-453: A four-place kit with cabin pressurization and a turboprop engine , cruising at 24,000 feet (7,300 m) and 370 knots (425 mph, 685 km/h). Although aircraft such as this are considered "home-built" for legal reasons, they are typically built in the factory with the assistance of the buyer. This allows the company which sells the kit to avoid the long and expensive process of certification, because they remain owner-built according to
270-732: A high tensile strength (usually fiberglass or carbon fiber , or occasionally Kevlar ) combined with a structural plastic (usually epoxy , although vinylester is used in some aircraft). The fabric is saturated with the structural plastic in a liquid form; when the plastic cures and hardens, the part will hold its shape while possessing the strength characteristics of the fabric. The two primary types of composite planes are moulded composite, where major structures like wing skins and fuselage halves are prepared and cured in moulds, and mouldless, where shapes are carved out of foam and then covered with fiberglass or carbon fiber. The advantages of this type of construction include smooth surfaces (without
324-417: A larger market for our airplanes. Emerging markets such as China and India could also boost demand for our products, but entire infrastructures will need to be formed before small players like us could benefit. Homebuilt aircraft can be constructed out of any material that is light and strong enough for flight. Several common construction methods are detailed below. This is the oldest construction, seen in
378-468: A peak of interest between 1929 and 1933. During this period many aircraft designers, builders and pilots were self-taught and the high accident rate brought public condemnation and increasing regulation to amateur building. The resulting federal standards on design, engineering, stress analysis, use of aircraft-quality hardware and testing of aircraft brought an end to amateur building except in some specialized areas, such as racing. In 1946 Goodyear restarted
432-669: A positive influence on the professionalism of its industry members and on the builders/pilots of its products. With concern over fuel prices, we might see a trend toward lower-powered aircraft intended more for pure sport flying rather than the trend toward cross-country aircraft, which has been the norm over the past 30 years. I would expect that toward the end of that period, there might be some design ventures into electric-powered aircraft, but only if battery technology improves significantly. We might see more motorglider-type homebuilts, tied both to high fuel prices and emerging electric-propulsion technology. What we do at Van's could mirror some of
486-432: A principal pioneer of turbine engines for medium and large helicopters, and has also produced engines for small jetliners and business jets. Lycoming is an operating division of Avco Corporation, itself a subsidiary of Textron . Lycoming dates its founding to 1845 by " Madame Ellen Curtis Demorest ". However, the early history of the company (especially prior to 1860) is unclear; biographer Ishbel Ross notes that
540-496: A year, with a 2,000-strong workforce. To handle the capacity, a new foundry complex was built in Williamsport that year. Eventually Lycoming became Auburn's principal supplier, and in 1927 Errett Lobban Cord bought the company, placing it under his Auburn Manufacturing umbrella group. Among the engines Lycoming produced for Cord was an L-head straight-eight engine of 298.5 cu. in. displacement that produced 125 horsepower. This
594-597: Is a low-wing, cantilever monoplane with an enclosed single-seat cockpit and manually retractable tailwheel landing gear based on that of the Jurca Sirocco . Suitable for a number of engines around 200 hp (149 kW), plans for the Gnatsum are available as the 2/3 scale MJ-7 and the 3/4 scale MJ-77, as well as the MJ-70 full-size representation. All versions are constructed from wood with fabric covering, and manufacturing rights to
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#1732876107454648-479: Is a major American manufacturer of aircraft engines . With a factory in Williamsport, Pennsylvania , Lycoming produces a line of horizontally opposed , air-cooled, four, six and eight-cylinder engines including the only FAA -certified aerobatic and helicopter piston engines on the market. The company has built more than 325,000 piston aircraft engines and powers more than half the world's general aviation fleet, both rotary and fixed wing . Lycoming has been
702-487: Is not a professional activity. These aircraft may be constructed from "scratch", from plans, or from assembly kits. In the United States , Brazil , Australia , New Zealand and South Africa , homebuilt aircraft may be licensed Experimental under FAA or similar local regulations. With some limitations, the builder(s) of the aircraft must have done it for their own education and recreation rather than for profit. In
756-622: Is not as good as certified general aviation aircraft. In the United States, in 2003, amateur-built aircraft experienced a rate of 21.6 accidents per 100,000 flight hours; the overall general aviation accident rate for that year was 6.75 per 100,000 flight hours. The accident rate for homebuilt aircraft in the U.S. has long been a concern to the Federal Aviation Administration . At Sun 'n Fun 2010, FAA administrator Randy Babbitt said that homebuilts "account for 10 percent of
810-638: Is toward wood-composite aircraft. The basic load carrying material is still wood, but it is combined with foam (for instance, to increase buckling resistance of load carrying plywood skins) and other synthetic materials like fiberglass and carbon fiber (to locally increase the modulus of load carrying structures such as spar caps). Examples of wood-composite designs include: Planes built from metal use similar techniques to more conventional factory-built aircraft. They can be more challenging to build, requiring metal-cutting, metal-shaping, and riveting if building from plans. "Quick-build" kits are available which have
864-483: The 100–360 hp (75–270 kW) range. Engines in this series also include the O-235 four-, O-580 six- and O-720 eight-cylinder engines, and the advanced turbocharged and fuel-injected 450 hp (340 kW) TIGO-541 variant of the venerable (carbureted) O-540. In the early 1980s, the general aviation market suddenly diminished and Lycoming's piston engine business was significantly impacted. Attempts were made to move some of
918-656: The Sun N' Fun Fly-In, which occurs in the early spring in Lakeland, Florida , and the Northwest EAA Fly-In in Arlington, Washington . These events are called fly-ins as many people fly their homebuilts and other aircraft into the airport hosting the show, often camping there for the duration. Both events last a week. Takeoffs and landings at these shows typically number in the thousands. Lycoming Engines Lycoming Engines
972-430: The canard design to the homebuilding world and pioneered the use of composite construction. Metal construction in kitplanes was taken to a new level by Richard VanGrunsven in his RV series . As the sophistication of the kits improved, components such as autopilots and more advanced navigation instruments became common. Litigation during the 1970s and 1980s caused stagnation in the small aircraft market, forcing
1026-586: The vulcanization of rubber. Around 1883, Gerrit S. Scofield & Frank M. Scofield (advertising agents from New York) bought the Demorest brand and the sewing machine business (the Demorests retained the magazine business), and constructed a factory in Williamsport, Pennsylvania (in Lycoming County ). At the urging of the newly established Williamsport Board of Trade, citizens invested US$ 100, 000 in
1080-518: The AVCO group, at which point the engine manufacturing company became "AVCO Lycoming". It also leased the government-owned Stratford Army Engine Plant in Stratford, Connecticut , and produced Wright radials under license. After the war, this plant was converted to produce the T53 turboshaft engine, one of its more successful designs. From this point on the piston and turbine engine lines remained separate, with
1134-529: The GA fleet, but 27 percent of accidents. It's not the builders [getting into accidents], but the second owners. We need better transition training." In the US, flight instruction , including primary flight training, can be received in the owner's homebuilt aircraft from any instructor willing to provide such training. A study released in 2012 by the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board concluded that homebuilt aircraft in
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#17328761074541188-527: The H-2470, but the engine's poor performance led to the adoption of an alternative radial engine on the prototype. (The XF14C did not enter production.) Undeterred by the O-1230/H-2470's failure, Lycoming turned to an even larger design, the 36-cylinder XR-7755 , the largest aviation piston engine ever built. This design also experienced problems, and was only ready for use at the very end of World War II , when
1242-621: The National Air Races, including a class for aircraft powered by 200 cubic inch and smaller engines. The midget racer class spread nationally in the U.S. and this led to calls for acceptable standards to allow recreational use of amateur-built aircraft. By the mid-1950s both the U.S. and Canada once again allowed amateur-built aircraft to specified standards and limitations. Homebuilt aircraft are generally small, one to four-seat sportsplanes which employ simple methods of construction. Fabric-covered wood or metal frames and plywood are common in
1296-560: The O-1230's entry into service, it had been surpassed by other designs and the US$ 500 ;000 investment was not recouped. Another attempt was made to rescue the design by stacking two O-1230s to make the 2 300 hp (1 700 kW) H engine H-2470 but the only design to use it, the Vultee XP-54 , never entered production. The Curtiss XF14C was originally intended to be powered by
1350-426: The U.S. have an accident rate 3–4 times higher than the rest of the general aviation fleet. Almost 10% of accidents involving homebuilt aircraft occurred on the craft's first flight. A further 9% of accidents occurred on their first flight after being sold, due to the new owner's unfamiliarity with the craft. The study also identified that powerplant failures and loss of control in-flight accidents were much higher than
1404-509: The U.S., the primary builder can also apply for a repairman's certificate for that airframe. The repairman's certificate allows the holder to perform and sign off on most of the maintenance, repairs, and inspections themselves. Alberto Santos-Dumont was the first to offer for free construction plans, publishing drawings of his Demoiselle in the June 1910 edition of Popular Mechanics. The first aircraft to be offered for sale as plans, rather than
1458-405: The US. Poberezny's Mechanix Illustrated articles gained worldwide acclaim and the concept of aircraft homebuilding took off. Until the late 1950s, builders had mainly kept to wood-and-cloth and steel tube-and-cloth design. Without the regulatory restrictions faced by production aircraft manufacturers, homebuilders introduced innovative designs and construction techniques. Burt Rutan introduced
1512-418: The above thinking. Unfortunately, I don't see the growth potential that there was in the 1980s and 1990s. There seems to be a shrinking pilot base from which to draw people to build kits. Plus, with demographic changes, there is possibly a diminishing interest in, or ability to undertake, aircraft building as a pastime. Hopefully, EAA and AOPA initiatives to interest more people in learning to fly will help create
1566-907: The aircraft structure, but increasingly, fiberglass and other composites as well as full aluminum construction techniques are being used, techniques first pioneered by Hugo Junkers as far back as the late World War I era. Engines are most often the same as, or similar to, the engines used in certified aircraft (such as Lycoming , Continental , Rotax , and Jabiru ). A minority of homebuilts use converted automobile engines, with Volkswagen air-cooled flat-4s , Subaru -based liquid-cooled engines, Mazda Wankel and Chevrolet Corvair six-cylinder engines being most common. The use of automotive engines helps to reduce costs, but many builders prefer dedicated aircraft engines , which are perceived to have better performance and reliability. Other engines that have been used include chainsaw and motorcycle engines. A combination of cost and litigation , especially in
1620-579: The aviation world was turning to turbojets and turboprop engines to power future large aircraft. There was apparently some interest in using it on the Convair B-36 Peacemaker bomber , but the 28-cylinder Pratt & Whitney R-4360 Wasp Major four-bank radial was used instead. Through the 1920s and -30s, Lycoming had still been supplying automotive manufacturers with engines. However, these clients each slowly went out of business or switched to Continental engines for their vehicles. By 1931,
1674-522: The company was sold and restructured as the Lycoming Foundry and Machine Company , shifting its focus toward automobile engine manufacture. In 1910, the company supplied its first automobile engine to Velie , and during the early post- World-War-I era, the company was a major supplier to Auburn (which produced the Auburn , Cord , and Duesenberg lines). By 1920, Lycoming was producing 60,000 engines
Jurca Gnatsum - Misplaced Pages Continue
1728-578: The company was supplying automotive engines to only three companies: Auburn , Cord and Duesenburg , still all under the control of Cord . These companies closed their doors in 1937, after which Lycoming switched to exclusively designing and producing engines for aviation. In the meantime, the Smith Engineering Corporation, an early manufacturer of controllable pitch propellers had been purchased by Cord and moved to Williamsport. In 1939 Cord re-organized all of his aviation holdings into
1782-490: The cutting, shaping, and hole-drilling mostly done, requiring only finishing and assembly. Such kits are also available for the other types of aircraft construction, especially composite. There are three main types of metal construction: sheet aluminum , tube aluminum, and welded steel tube. The tube structures are covered in aircraft fabric , much like wooden aircraft. Examples of metal-based amateur aircraft include: Composite material structures are made of cloth with
1836-599: The drag of rivets), the ability to construct compound curves, and the ability to place fiberglass or carbon fiber in optimal positions, orientations, and quantities. Drawbacks include the need to work with chemical products as well as low strength in directions perpendicular to fiber. Composites provide superb strength to their weight. Material stiffness dependent upon direction (as opposed to equal in all directions, as with metals) allows for advanced "elastic tailoring" of composite parts. Examples of amateur craft made of composite materials include: The safety record of homebuilts
1890-554: The first aircraft and hence the best known. For that reason, amateur-built aircraft associations will have more specialists for this type of craft than other kinds. The most commonly used woods are Sitka spruce and Douglas fir , which offer excellent strength-to-weight ratios. Wooden structural members are joined with adhesive, usually epoxy . Unlike the wood construction techniques used in other applications, virtually all wooden joints in aircraft are simple butt joints , with plywood gussets . Joints are designed to be stronger than
1944-468: The first homebuilt aircraft. In 1928, Henri Mignet published plans for his HM-8 Pou-du-Ciel , as did Pietenpol for his Air Camper . Pietenpol later constructed a factory, and in 1933 began creating and selling partially constructed aircraft kits. In 1936, an association of amateur aviation enthusiasts was created in France. Many types of amateur aircraft began to make an appearance, and in 1938 legislation
1998-553: The kit aircraft were acquired by Falconar Avia . Plans for the MJ-77 are available from Avions Marcel Jurca. Some of the engines suitable for the MJ-7 Gnatsum series are:- Data from General characteristics Performance Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era Homebuilt aircraft Homebuilt aircraft , also known as amateur-built aircraft or kit planes , are constructed by persons for whom this
2052-866: The marriage of Ellen Louise Curtis to William Jennings Demorest took place in 1858, somewhat later than the purported date of establishment of the company. A few years later in New York , between c. 1860 and 1887, the Demorests published fashion magazines and operated the Demorest Fashion and Sewing-Machine Company (sometimes known as the Demorest Manufacturing Company ). They produced "Madame Demorest" and "Bartlett & Demorest" sewing machines and sold Ellen Demorest's innovative paper patterns for dressmaking. During this period, Ellen Demorest patented several fashion accessories, while her husband patented improvements to sewing machines and an apparatus for
2106-401: The members. After the structure has been completed, the aircraft is covered in aircraft fabric (usually aircraft-grade polyester ). The advantage of this type of construction is that it does not require complex tools and equipment, instead employing commonplace items such as saw, planer, file, sandpaper, and clamps. Examples of amateur-built wood and fabric designs include: A recent trend
2160-408: The mid-1950s when EAA founder Paul Poberezny wrote a series of articles for the magazine Mechanix Illustrated where he explained how a person could buy a set of plans and build their own aircraft at home. In 1955, Poberezny co-founded, with Robert D. Blacker, EAA's first youth outreach program, Project Schoolflight , which brought "homebuilding" into high school industrial arts classes throughout
2214-472: The mid-1980s era, discouraged general aviation manufacturers from introducing new designs and led to homebuilts outselling factory built aircraft by five to one. The history of amateur-built aircraft can be traced to the beginning of aviation. Even if the Wright brothers , Clément Ader , and their successors had commercial objectives in mind, the first aircraft were constructed by passionate enthusiasts whose goal
Jurca Gnatsum - Misplaced Pages Continue
2268-481: The most popular line of engines for U.S. Experimental / Amateur-Built (E/A-B) aircraft, surpassing the 5 next-most-popular brands, combined. The aircraft piston engine prefixes are: Lycoming was one of the principal pioneers of turbine engines -- turboshaft to be precise—for medium- and heavy-lift helicopters, some of which have found other applications as well. Its 1,400 horsepower (1,000 kW) T53 hybrid free turbine / shaft turbine engine initially powered
2322-469: The new manufacturing facility, which employed 250 people. The factory produced 50 to 60 sewing machines per day. With the development of the "New York Bicycle" in 1891 (designed by employee S. H. Ellis), the company diversified its product offerings. Until the early 1900s, the factory produced sewing machines , bicycles , typewriters , opera chairs and other products. By 1907, the manufacture of sewing machines had become unprofitable for Demorest, and
2376-618: The piston lines being built in the original Williamsport factories, and turbines in Stratford. By 1961, Lycoming produced 600 to 700 engines per month. Its most successful post-war products were a series of air-cooled flat-4 and flat-6 general aviation engines. Most famous among these are the O-320 and O-360 four-cylinder engines, and the O-540 six-cylinder engine. Many light aircraft are powered by versions of these engines, with power ratings in
2430-529: The project to Deere, which brought in Lycoming to sell the developed engine into the aviation markets. It was guaranteed a startup run by Cessna , also owned by Textron. Just as production was ready to start, Cessna announced it was halting its small-aircraft business for an indefinite period, and SCORE was cancelled. The remains of the Deere licenses were later purchased by Rotary Power International, which briefly produced
2484-466: The regulations. One of the terms applied to this concept is commonly referred to as "The 51% Rule", which requires that builders perform the majority of the fabrication and assembly to be issued a Certificate of Airworthiness as an Amateur Built aircraft. A small number of jet kitplanes have been built since the 1970s, including the tiny Bede Aircraft BD-5J . Van's Aircraft and Aircraft Kit Industry Association (AKIA) President Dick VanGrunsven
2538-698: The same rates for certified aircraft. Most nations' aviation regulations require amateur-built aircraft to be physically marked as such (for example in the U.K. "Occupant Warning – This aircraft ... is amateur built." must be displayed ), and extra flight testing is usually required before passengers (who are not pilots themselves) can be carried. The largest airshow in the world is the Experimental Aircraft Association 's annual EAA AirVenture Oshkosh airshow in Oshkosh, Wisconsin , which takes place in late July and early August. Other annual events are
2592-472: The surviving companies to retain older, proven designs. In recent years, the less restrictive regulations for homebuilts allowed a number of manufacturers to develop new and innovative designs; many can outperform certified production aircraft in their class. An example of high-end homebuilt design is Lancair , which has developed a number of high-performance kits. The most powerful is the Lancair Propjet ,
2646-421: The turbine production to Williamsport, but this led to a series of quality control problems and eventually it was abandoned. Another attempt to rescue Williamsport was made in introducing the "radical" SCORE engine, a Wankel engine originally developed through a joint venture between Curtiss-Wright and John Deere . Curtiss-Wright lost interest in the design just as it was maturing and sold its interests in
2700-538: Was a fairly successful design, and was used widely in light aircraft , including Cord's Travel Air . In the 1930s, Lycoming made a number of attempts to develop successful high-power aircraft engines. The 1 200 hp (895 kW) O-1230 was Lycoming's attempt to produce an engine based on the United States Army Air Corps hyper engine concept, and used a variety of features to produce nearly 1 hp/ in (46 kW/L) of engine displacement . However, by
2754-778: Was amended to provide for a Certificat de navigabilité restreint d'aéronef ( CNRA , " restricted operating certificate for aircraft "). 1946 saw the birth of the Ultralight Aircraft Association which in 1952 became the Popular Flying Association in the United Kingdom , followed in 1953 by the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) in the United States and the Sport Aircraft Association in Australia . The term "homebuilding" became popular in
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#17328761074542808-513: Was asked about the future of the kit aircraft industry in a wide-ranging interview in KitPlanes magazine in December 2012: I don't expect to see dramatic changes in the industry within the next five years. Ten years; who knows – it’s too dependent on fuel prices, FAA policy, etc. Overall, I think our industry will continue to mature, particularly as AKIA is successful in growing and having
2862-594: Was to fly. Aviation took a leap forward with the industrialization that accompanied World War I . In the post-war period, manufacturers needed to find new markets and introduced models designed for tourism. However, these machines were affordable only by the very rich. Many U.S. aircraft designed and registered in the 1920s onward were considered "experimental" by the (then) CAA, the same registration under which modern homebuilts are issued Special Airworthiness Certificates . Many of these were prototypes, but designs such as Bernard Pietenpol 's first 1923 design were some of
2916-528: Was used in the Cord L-29. Lycoming also produced a double overhead cam straight 8 used in the legendary Duesenberg J series. This powerplant produced 265 horsepower, six times the power of a contemporary Model A Ford. A supercharged version, generating 325 horsepower, was installed in the Duesenberg SJ and SSJ models. In 1929, Lycoming produced its first aviation engine, the nine-cylinder R-680 radial . This
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