Photograph:
Photograph from the manufacturer’s brochure
Country of origin:
Australia
Description:
Single-seat light sport aircraft
Power Plant:
One 21 kw (29 hp) Rotax 277 single-cylinder, two-stroke, geared, air-cooled engine
Specifications:
- Wingspan: 8 m (26 ft 3 in)
- Length: 4.26 m (14 ft)
- Cruising speed: 120 km/h (75 mph)
History:
In the 1980s Ultralight Aircraft Components Pty Ltd of Bondi Beach, NSW commenced marketing the Avro Mantis ultralight aircraft. It was developed from the Veenstra series, in particular the Veenstra motor-glider. This led, it was said, “to the ultimate cruise performance of any ultra-light aircraft in the world”. It could be fitted with either the 250 cc Fuji Robin or a 21 kw (29 hp) [277 cc] Rotax 277 engine At one stage the aircraft was to be made available in two-seat form. The wing was a single-spar unit capped and riveted with 18 foam sandwich ribs per side with a fibreglass skin. The fuselage was built in jigs with 6061 alloy tube.
The Mantis was designed to meet ANO 95.10 category rules and had a conventional V-tail, three axis control and a strut-braced wing. It had a double surface wing of composite structure “giving optimum performance with reduced drag”.
Ultralight Aircraft Components Pty Ltd was a registered engineering and repair workshop, with a complete range of ultralight components available, which manufactured advanced fibreglass components, including seaplane floats.