Experimenter is a magazine created by EAA for people who build airplanes. We will report on amateur-built aircraft as well as ultralights and other light aircraft.
Issue link: http://experimenter.epubxp.com/i/418587
EAA Experimenter 33 Nope—didn't do much, so back to the drawing board. Next came ailerons and that did the trick: The Quicksilver was now a three-axis airplane. This new model, the MXL (for aiLeron), sold like blueberry hotcakes. Quicksilver parlayed its success into an expansive dealer network and new models. Training aircraft were needed, so Dave and company created a two-seat Quick. These birds existed in a quasi-legal gray area. They were too heavy for the ultralight category and carried two people. FAA let them pass as trainers, but many abused the privilege by using them for two-person recreational fl ying. When the sport pilot rule came out in 2004, two-seaters could be grandfathered in as experimental light-sport air- craft (E-LSA), with proper inspection and some paperwork bureaucracy…but only until 2008. Those owners who didn't get with the program missed the boat. Two-seater "ultra- lights" could then be registered as experimental amateur- built (E-AB) and used for ultralight training…as long as dealers didn't charge for it. There went a lot of revenue and many dealers closed up shop. The ultralight industry had gone through a major slump after the disastrous mid-1980s "exposé" ( journalistic hatch- et job) by ABC's 20/20 TV program. The public, believing the program's lies and distortions and horrified by the gruesome graphics of showing a pilot falling to his death, reacted predictably: Within six weeks of that show, half the orders for all ultralight companies were canceled. Ultra- light flying, which had been well on its way to filling the skies with aircraft, was dealt a near-fatal blow from which it never fully recovered. Quicksilver Aircraft continued as a market leader, although it too felt the pinch. Most ultralight companies folded even quicker then they had opened. In the meantime, Quicksilver introduced the GT line, designed by Dave Cronk, who had returned to the fold, and Tom Price. The enclosed cockpit, double-surface-winged, three-axis single-seat GT 400 was a legal ultralight. The later two-seat GT 500 was too heavy and fast for the FAR 103 ultralight category. It was offered as an E-AB kit or ready-to-fly airplane (Sportplane Class) in the new FAA category of Primary Aircraft. Along the way, Lyle Byrum sold the company. It lan- guished and was sold again in 2012 to Will Escutia and Dan Perez. They renamed it as Quicksilver Aircraft. Escutia is the president; Perez wrangles the day-to-day operations at Quicksilver HQ in Temecula, California. The new manage- ment team has big ideas for the future. THE QUICK REBORN I tracked down Will Escutia at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh this year to get a sense of his vision for the company. He said, "I loved the feeling of fl ying a Quicksilver from the fi rst fl ight. I thought, 'Flying is a universal dream. And here's an opportunity for all to do it.' I stayed engaged with this idea, and in 2012, purchased the company with the help of investors." Escutia and Perez inherited a company struggling to stay aloft and only producing kits. In less than three years, their re- energized Quicksilver Aeronautics has made signifi cant strides. "We love kits and continue to make them, but we wanted to take the company into the S-LSA arena as well," Escutia said. After 19 months of certifi cation rigors, the S-LSA certi- fi cation was awarded to the Sport 2SE two-seater in June of this year. "Our principal idea for going the S-LSA route was two- fold," he continued. "We want to give non-builders a ready-to- fl y, af ordable airplane. And we want to grow our dealership network by giving them an aircraft they could legally train in and be able to charge for that training. We also want to help them increase profi ts by providing them with E-LSA kits that they can either sell outright or build for their customers." E-LSA kits do not have the same restrictions as E-AB kits: They can be built almost entirely by a dealer. "We feel that's good for the customer by giving them more options, and good for the dealer, too," Escutia said. He plans to grow the world dealer network as well. "China, India, and other countries are like the U.S. was 20 years ago: A new generation of pilots wants to experience ultralight fl ying," he said. "The Quicksilver is geared toward that market. It doesn't require a lot of construction. It's easy to fl y safely." Quicksilver just sold 77 airplanes to its fi rst dealer in China. The sleeping civilian pilot giant is about to awaken in that vast country. I asked Will what he likes most about fl ying the Quicksilver. "The ability to take of from a small fi eld…that's freedom for me," he said. "To fl y and see things up close—it's very exciting. When you land at a dif erent airfi eld, you meet new people who come over to talk to you about the airplane. I like to encourage them to try this kind of in-the-open fl ying. "Most of my fl ights are alone, but the ones I remember best are with other people. Two-seat fl ying gives you that fl exibility, and you remember the story of the fl ight you shared very well." ON QUICKSILVER WINGS Quicksilver Aeronautics offers a full line of ultralights, special light-sport aircraft (S-LSA), and experimental amateur-built (E-AB) kit aircraft: Sport 2S – two-seat (side-by-side) open-cockpit E-AB kit (starting at $23,999) (three models available) S-LSA Sport 2SE – ready-to-fl y ($39,999) GT 500 – two-seat (tandem) E-AB kit, currently in S-LSA certifi cation pro- cess (starting at $29,900) MXII Sprint – (side-by-side) ultralight-style E-AB kit MX Sprint – single-seat ultralight (starting at $19,999) MX Sport – single-seat ultralight Get all the details here: www.QuicksilverAircraft.com.