Photograph:
Falconar F-11 ZK-KEA (c/n AACA-490) at Paraparaumu, NZ in 1983 (Keith Morris – NZCIVAIR)
Country of origin:
Canada
Description:
Two-seat light sport monoplane
Power Plant:
One 75 kw (100 hp) Continental O-200 four-cylinder horizontally-opposed air-cooled engine
Specifications:
- Wingspan: 8.33 m (27 ft 4 in)
- Length: 6.7 m (22 ft)
- Wing area: 12.8 m² (138 sq ft)
- Never exceed speed: 298 km/h (185 mph)
- Cruising speed: 198 km/h (123 mph)
- Stalling speed: 61 km/h (38 mph)
- Rate of climb: 305 m/min (1,000 ft/min)
- Service ceiling: 4,267 m (14,000 ft)
- Range: 917 km (570 miles)
- Fuel capacity: 64 litres (14 Imp gals)
- Take-off run: 61 m (200 ft)
- Landing run: 91 m (300 ft)
- Empty weight: 356 kg (785 lb)
- Useful load: 190 kg (418 lb)
- Loaded weight: 590 kg (1,300 lb)
History:
The Falconar F-11, known as the ‘sporty’, was designed by Christopher Falconar in Canada for amateur builders. It was built by Falconar Avia at Edmonton in Alberta and supplied in kit form or as plans. The F-11 was a variant of the Jodel D-11 and differed in having a larger cockpit, simplified fittings, shoulder harness and a number of aerodynamic improvements which improved the aircraft’s stalling characteristics. The wing was re-designed with new simplified rib design allowing the aircraft to have folding wings to enable the aircraft to be towed behind a vehicle, or to reduce the amount of hangar space required.
The F-11 was a cantilever low-wing monoplane with two seats side-by-side in an enclosed cockpit 102 cm (40 in) wide with a fixed tailwheel undercarriage, but a tricycle undercarriage was available as an option. Construction was of wood with the flying surfaces covered in fabric. An option was the installation of flaps. Engines ranging from 48 kw to 104 kw (65 hp to 140 hp) could be installed, and engines known to be fitted have included the Continental O-200, Continental A-65, Lycoming O-235, Continental O-290, Franklin 4AC, Volkswagen conversions, and Hirth F-30. Two models were made available, the F-11A Sporty and the F-11E, a lightened model released in 1987 for the Canadian basic ultralight category.
Two F-11s are known to have been constructed and registered in New Zealand, being ZK-KEA (c/n AACA/490) with a folding wing and a sprung-steel undercarriage built in Wellington and first registered on 19 November 1982. It was later sold and was based at Palmerston North. The second became ZK-FZZ (c/n AACA/275) but was removed from the register in July 2001.