51-476: The Steen Skybolt is an American homebuilt aerobatic biplane . Designed by teacher Lamar Steen as a high school engineering project, the prototype first flew in October 1970. The aircraft has a classic structure consisting of a welded tube fuselage and wooden wings, all fabric covered . It is a tandem open-cockpit two-seat biplane and is stressed for normal aerobatics. The cockpits are frequently constructed as
102-562: A cantilever wing design with virtually no external bracing, the Junkers F 13 of 1919 (the world's first all-metal passenger aircraft), the Junkers W 33 (which made the first successful heavier-than-air east-to-west crossing of the Atlantic Ocean), the Junkers G.38 "flying wing", and the Junkers Ju 52 , affectionately nicknamed "Tante Ju", one of the most famous airliners of the 1930s. When
153-693: A tankless heater . In 1895, he founded Junkers & Co. to utilize his inventions. From 1897, he was offered a professorship of mechanical engineering at Aachen, where he lectured until 1912. Working as an engineer at the same time, Junkers taking substantial gains of Junkers & Co. devised, patented, and exploited calorimeters, domestic appliances (gas stoves), pressure regulators, gas oil engines, fan heaters , and other inventions. Junkers' aeronautical work began in earnest at age 50 when he worked with engineer Hans Reissner in Aachen. Reissner had developed an all-metal aircraft, on which work first started in 1909 at
204-603: 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
255-453: 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
306-732: 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
357-417: 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
408-654: A manufacturing plant in Fili , a suburb of Moscow, in the Soviet Union in the 1920s) with a similar armored fuselage design. As this design philosophy for such combat aircraft had proven to be a good idea, it was once again broadly reused for the 1970s-premiered American Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II "Warthog" twin- turbofan powered attack aircraft, also having its pilot enveloped in an armoured titanium bathtub. By 1918, Junkers' firm, with its previously demonstrated preference for monoplane -pattern airframe designs, had created
459-468: 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
510-669: 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
561-501: A single tandem cabin with an enclosing bubble canopy. Some aerobatic competition aircraft are built as single seaters with the front cockpit closed off. The original Skybolt had a 180 hp (134 kW) Lycoming HO-360-B1B engine, but powerplants of 150 to 260 hp (112 to 194 kW) can be installed. The Skybolt has become popular as an amateur-built sporting biplane, with over 400 aircraft having been completed from construction plans sold in over 29 countries. A Skybolt won
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#1733085393320612-487: 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
663-622: 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
714-638: 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
765-525: The Brand Heath, equipped with corrugated iron wings built by Junkers & Co. in Dessau. The iron wings were patented one year later. Junkers had a wind tunnel built and invented a hydraulic brake . He had far-sighted ideas of metal aeroplanes and flying wings , but the necessities of the war held him back. During World War I , the government forced him to focus on aircraft production. In 1915, he developed
816-524: The German Empire during World War I , later in minor association with Anthony Fokker , as well as civil aircraft designs during the "interwar period" produced by Junkers Flugzeugwerke (Junkers Aircraft Works). Junkers died in 1935, on his 76th birthday. The earliest all-metal post-World War I aircraft designs of both Andrei Tupolev — with his Tupolev ANT-2 two-passenger small aircraft of 1924 — and William Bushnell Stout 's initial all-metal design,
867-461: The Stout ST twin-engine torpedo bomber of 1922, were both based directly on the pioneering work of Junkers, with each engineer (one Soviet, one American) separately developing examples of aircraft like Tupolev's enormous, 63 meter wingspan, eight-engined Maksim Gorki — the largest aircraft built anywhere in the world in the early 1930s — and Stout's popular Ford Trimotor airliner. In 1976, Junkers
918-685: 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. Hugo Junkers Hugo Junkers (3 February 1859 – 3 February 1935)
969-430: 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
1020-602: The Continental-Gasgesellschaft in Dessau , where he worked on the development of the first opposed-piston engine . To measure heating value , Junkers patented a calorimeter and founded a manufacturing company in 1892. Junkers personally introduced the calorimeter at the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago , where it was awarded a gold medal. The next year, he patented a gas-fired bath boiler , which he refined as
1071-529: 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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#17330853933201122-621: 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
1173-613: The Nazis came into power in 1933, they requested Junkers and his businesses aid in the German re-armament. When Junkers declined, the Nazis placed him under house arrest in 1934 and eventually seized control of his patents and company. He died the following year. Under Nazi control, his company produced some of the most successful German warplanes of the Second World War. Junkers was born in Rheydt in
1224-685: The Prussian Rhine Province , the son of a wealthy industrialist. After taking his Abitur exams in 1878, he attended the Technische Hochschulen in Charlottenburg (now Technische Universität Berlin ) and Aachen (now RWTH Aachen ), where he completed his engineering studies in 1883. At first, he returned to Rheydt to work in his father's company, but soon attended further lectures on electromagnetism and thermodynamics held by Adolf Slaby in Charlottenburg. Slaby placed him with
1275-800: The Reserve Grand Champion Custom Built for 1979 at the Experimental Aircraft Association airshow in Oshkosh Wisconsin. Sixteen examples were registered in the United Kingdom in January 2009. Data from Simpson 2001 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
1326-426: 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
1377-509: 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
1428-405: 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
1479-418: 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
1530-907: 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
1581-490: 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
Steen Skybolt - Misplaced Pages Continue
1632-403: The designs of their earlier aircraft, which benefited from Junkers' corrugated, light-metal construction technique. The Junkers F.13 of 1919 was the first of several successful civil aircraft designs produced by Junkers Flugzeugwerke : later designs include the Junkers Ju 52/3m from 1932. Through a variety of business initiatives, Junkers was active in founding and developing airlines around
1683-599: 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
1734-494: The factory for improvements. When the Nazis gained control of the German government in 1933, Junkers opposed their goal of re-armament. They responded by demanding ownership of all patents and market shares from his remaining companies, under threat of imprisonment on the charge of high treason. He was placed under house arrest in 1934 and died on 3 February 1935. Hugo Junkers is mainly known in connection with aircraft bearing his name. These include some he reluctantly developed for
1785-554: 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
1836-468: 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
1887-503: The globe, initially intending to sell them aircraft. Airlines where Junkers played a pivotal role in early phases of their development include Deutsche Luft Hansa and Lloyd Aéreo Boliviano . Several business ventures failed from wider economic or political problems that hampered sound engineering plans. Junkers always had more ideas: the massive four-engined G.38 , nicknamed "Der Grosse Dessauer", delivered to Luft Hansa, made no commercial trips for many months as he repeatedly recalled it to
1938-401: 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
1989-408: 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
2040-472: 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
2091-466: 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
Steen Skybolt - Misplaced Pages Continue
2142-623: 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
2193-472: 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 ,
2244-546: The war. During this time, the German government's IdFlieg military aviation inspectorate forced him to merge his firm with Anthony Fokker 's to form the Junkers-Fokker Aktiengesellschaft on 20 October 1917. The J.I's pattern of an armored fuselage that protected the nose-mounted engine, pilot, and observer in a unitized metal "bathtub" was the possible inspiration for Sergey Ilyushin 's later Il-2 Shturmovik (conceivably appropriate as Junkers did have
2295-509: The world's first practical all-metal aircraft design, the Junkers J 1 "Blechesel" (Sheetmetal Donkey), which survived on display at the Deutsches Museum in Munich until WWII. His firm's first military production design in 1916–17 was the armored-fuselage, two-seat, all-metal sesquiplane known by its IdFlieg designation, the Junkers J.I , considered the best German ground attack aircraft of
2346-519: The world's first production low-winged, single-seat monoplane all-metal fighter aircraft, the Junkers D.I , which pioneered the use of Alfred Wilm 's 1906 invention of duralumin throughout a production airframe. The D.I did not enter production until 1918. He also produced a two-seat monoplane fighter, the Junkers CL.I . Both postwar Soviet aviation pioneer Andrei Tupolev and American aviation designer William Bushnell Stout owed much to Hugo Junkers in
2397-551: The world. In addition to aircraft, Junkers also built both diesel and petrol engines and held various thermodynamic and metallurgical patents. He was also one of the main sponsors of the Bauhaus movement and facilitated the move of the Bauhaus from Weimar to Dessau (where his factory was situated) in 1925. Amongst the highlights of his career were the Junkers J 1 of 1915, the world's first practical all-metal aircraft, incorporating
2448-480: Was a German aircraft engineer and aircraft designer who pioneered the design of all-metal airplanes and flying wings. His company, Junkers Flugzeug- und Motorenwerke AG (Junkers Aircraft and Motor Works), was one of the mainstays of the German aircraft industry in the years between World War I and World War II . His multi-engined, all-metal passenger- and freight planes helped establish airlines in Germany and around
2499-778: 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
2550-513: 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
2601-594: 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
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