Country of origin:

Australia

Description:

Single-seat ultralight amphibian

Power Plant:

One 31 kw (41.6 hp) Rotax 447UL-2V two-cylinder, two-stroke, fan-cooled, electronic single-ignition engine

Specifications:

History:

The Bailey Moyes Connie was one of a series of ultralights developed by Mr William “Bill” Moyes at Waverley in Sydney, NSW and Mr Robert Bailey in Florida, USA. It was described as neither a flying-boat nor a float-equipped ultralight, being said to be a flying float. It was a lightweight aircraft that qualified under American FAA Part 103 Ultralight Regulations. Under AC 103-7 the designer could add 13.6 kg (30 lb) for each of two floats, or 13.6 kg (30 lb) if the ultralight used a boat hull. An additional 4.5 kg (10 lb) could be added for each wing-tip sponson so the aircraft could have a base empty weight of 115 kg (254 lb) plus 13.6 kg (30 lb) for the hull and 9 kg (20 lb) for the twin sponsons, giving a total of 138 kg (304 lb). Allowing for an emergency parachute the aircraft could have a weight of 149 kg (328 lb).

In the design the float was used as the primary structural component, and then a modified version of the Tempest ultralight sailplane wing was added. The power plant, was the 31 kw (41.6 hp) Rotax 447 engine.

Following an enthusiastic response at the 2013 ‘Sun ‘n Fun’ fly-in in Florida the aircraft was placed in production. The undercarriage was retracted by a simple lever that lifted the undercarriage out of the water spray, pulling the tailwheel up into the float body and then being secured under a hook. After some testing the retractable tailwheel was not proceeded with and it was fixed.

Two wings were available, one being a cruising wing and the other a larger wing optimised for lower cruising speed and stalling speed but able to operate better in and out of lakes.

The aircraft was made available to interested operators by Quest Air Soaring of Groveland, Florida.