Photograph:
North American Rotorwerks Pitbull ZK-RUN (c/n NAR62) at Dargaville, New Zealand in July 2016 (Jean210 – NZCIVAIR)
Country of origin:
United States of America
Description:
Single-seat light sporting gyrocopter
Power Plant:
One 31 kw (41.6 hp) Rotax 447 UL2V two-cylinder two-cycle electronic single-ignition fan-cooled engine
Specifications:
- Main rotor diameter: 7.16 m (23 ft 6 in)
- Length: 4.09 m (13 ft 5 in)
- Width: 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
- Height: 2.44 m (8 ft)
- Max speed: 129 km/h (80 mph)
- Cruising speed: 105 km/h (65 mph)
- Minimum speed: 35 km/h (22 mph)
- Rate of climb: 271 m/min (890 ft/min)
- Fuel capacity: 23 litres (5 Imp gals)
- Empty weight: 118 kg (260 lb)
- Useful load: 109 kg (240 lb)
- Loaded weight: 227 kg (500 lb)
History:
Following the introduction in the United States of US FAR 103 regulations for Ultralight Vehicles, a number of companies produced ultralight aircraft for the market which complied with these regulations, one of these being the Pitbull gyrocopter. North American Rotorwerks was founded in about 2008 by John Vanvoorhees. He specialised in the design and manufacture of light autogyros for the amateur construction market, and supplied kits to interested builders. The Company was based at Tukwila in Washington but in 2013, after a number of examples were built, the Company “suspended production due to a change of circumstances.”
The Pitbull was designed to outwardly resemble early autogyros from the 1930s period such as the Pitcairn, Kellett, Cierva etc, these latter machines at the time being fitted with radial engines. The Pitbull has a round fuselage that looks like it is fitted with a radial engine but it is in fact usually fitted with the reliable engines produced by Rotax in Austria. At one time eight examples appeared on the US Civil Aircraft Register.
Three models of the Pitbull were offered on the market, the first being the Pitbull Ultralight, which was a single-seat machine with an open cockpit, a single main rotor, a conventional tailwheel undercarriage and powered by the Rotax 447 engine in the tractor configuration.
The Pitbull SS was a higher powered single-seat model which could be registered in the Experimental category and could be fitted with the 48 kw (64 hp) Rotax 582 engine or the Subaru EA81 of 63 kw (85 hp). It had a gross weight of 277 kg (610 lb). One example was built with a Hirth F30ES four-cylinder two-stroke engine that is fuel-injected and fan-cooled, with an electric start, and produces 82 kw (110 hp).
The Pitbull II was a two-seat development with a main rotor of 9.1 m (30 ft) diameter, a strut-braced tailplane and an electric pre-rotator as standard. It could be fitted with engines in the 67 kw to 119 kw (90 hp to 160 hp) range and had a gross weight of 465 kg (1,025 lb), usually being fitted with the 75 kw (100 hp) Rotax 912S engine driving a three-blade Warp Drive composite propeller.
An example has been built in New Zealand and is believed to be the only one imported to this part of the world. This machine is a Model SS registered to Brian Taylor of Whanareia, is fitted with a Rotax 503 engine and became ZK-RUN (c/n NAR62) in 2016.