History:

The Mayfly 3 was designed by Mr William Watley who had previously built in the 1940s a Mignet HM 290, which made two flights, and a Jodel D-9 which operated from Gatton in Queensland for some years. The Mayfly 3 is a man-powered biplane (by bicycle type pedals) which he built in a time, it is said, of some 6,000 hours. The structure was of commercial pine with white polystyrene covering; mylar, and the cockpit framework was of commercial aluminium. Some testing of the aircraft was carried out at Kooralbyn, NSW and these necessitated a number of structural changes, including a re-design of the undercarriage and wheels. It has a wingspan of 15.24 m (50 ft), a length of 7.92 m (26 ft) and a height of 3.04 m (10 ft). In 2007 the Mayfly 3 was placed in storage at the Australian Aviation Museum at Bankstown pending the museums move to Camden where it, and the other aircraft in the fleet, were to be placed on display. However, in 2019 the Bankstown Museum closed and the fate of the Mayfly 3 is not known.

Further information:

Information on this aircraft is currently limited. The Author welcomes any further specifications and/or details to update the site.