Photograph:
An American registered Eagle (Lightsportnews.com)
Country of origin:
United States of America
Description:
Single-seat ultralight sport aircraft
Power Plant:
One 26 kw (35 hp) Cuyuna 430R two-cylinder, two-stroke, engine with 22:1 cog-belt reduction
Specifications:
- Wingspan: 11 m (35 ft)
- Wing area: 16.4 m² (177 sq ft)
- Max speed: 80 km/h (50 mph)
- Cruising speed: 56 km/h (35 mph)
- Stalling speed: 42 km/h (26 mph)
- Service ceiling: 5,334 m (17,500 ft)
- Fuel capacity: 15 litres (3.3 Imp gals)
- G-limits: +8/-2.5
- Max glide ratio: 1:1
- Rate of climb: 259 m/min (850 ft/min)
- Rate of sink: 91 m/min (300 ft/min)
- Empty weight: 102 kg (225 lb)
- Loaded weight: 464 kg (1,023 lb)
History:
The Eagle has been produced in the United States since 1975 in single-seat form (Eagle) and two-seat form (Double Eagle). Designed by Larry Hair, it was supplied to amateur constructors in kit form and was designed to meet US FAR 103 Ultralight Vehicle regulations. In the single-seat Eagle 215B form it had a standard empty weight of 77 kg (170 lb) and featured a cable-braced, high-wing, canard wing with a single seat, an open cockpit and a tricycle undercarriage, the engine being installed in the pusher configuration. It was of bolted-together aluminium tube with the flying surfaces covered in Dacron sailcloth.
However, after a number of accidents due to deterioration of the sailcloth used, a heavier cloth was substituted and a steel cable was used for the trailing-edge. A few models were produced using a variety of control systems, the aircraft eventually ending up with conventional controls. Following the Eagle 215B, the XL appeared with more conventional controls.
The Double Eagle was supplied to the Monterey Park Police Department in California,USA in 1981 but eventually production ceased. Examples appear in the Saskatchewan Western Development Museum at Moose Jaw in Canada; and another at the Udvar-Hazy Centre at Dulles Airport in Virginia.
A couple of examples were imported to Australia, one aircraft, fitted with a Cuyuna 215 engine, becoming 10-7185 (c/n 102023) on 23 July 2009.