Photograph:
Aerostar Festival R-40S 24-4906 at Hoxton Park, NSW (David C Eyre)
Country of origin:
Romania
Description:
Two-seat light sport aircraft
Power Plant:
One 75 kw (100 hp) Rotax 912ULS four-cylinder horizontally-opposed liquid-and-air-cooled engine
Specifications:
- Wingspan: 9.17 m (30 ft 1 in)
- Length: 6.74 m (22 ft 1¼ in)
- Height: 2.47 m (8 ft 1¼ in)
- Wing area: 13.97 m² (156.4 sq ft)
- Max speed: 185 km/h (115 mph)
- Cruising speed: 170 km/h (106 mph)
- Stalling speed flaps down: 66 km/h (41 mph)
- Max rate of climb: 240 m/min (787 ft/min)
- Service ceiling: 4,000 m (13,120 ft)
- Rate of climb: 302 m/min (990 ft/min)
- Take-off run: 85 m (280 ft)
- Landing run: 90 m (295 ft)
- Max range at cruising speed with 10% reserve: 800 km (497 miles)
- Empty weight: 351 kg (774 lb)
- Useful load: 227 kg (500 lb)
- Loaded weight: 599 kg (1,320 lb)
History:
The R-40S was a low-wing all-metal construction kit aircraft produced in Romania for the light aircraft market. The prototype (YR-6138) was shown at the Paris Airshow in June 2001, this aircraft making its first flight on 3 May 2001. Subsequently some development was carried out to improve the design for production, the first such aircraft (YR-6107) making its first flight in September 2003. Certification was granted and it was placed into production, deliveries being made to a number of countries around the world.
The Festival was covered with Ceconite, seating two side-by-side, and had dual controls, a fixed aluminium all-terrain tricycle undercarriage, and hydraulic brakes. Fuel capacity was 83 litres (18.3 Imp gals) and G limits at MTOW were +4/-2G. Engine was the Rotax 912ULS driving a KLASSIC 170/3/R three-blade propeller.
The first of the type seen in this region arrived in Australia early in 2005 for the Australian importer, Red Star Aviation at Bankstown, NSW, being completed by its owner/builder at Wedderburn, NSW in mid 2006 as 24-4096. Further examples registered include 24-8035 (c/n 110506) and 24-8036 (c/n 110507).