14 Vol.3 No.12 / December 2014
LEONARD MILHOLL AND'S LEGAL EAGLE
proceeded to deliver a string of standard jokes with a perfect
sense of timing. He also talked about his age, saying he had
promised his wife he would live to be at least 100. A check of
his calculated life expectancy at this time came out to 104,
so when they reach that point they will make new plans.
It was a treat to be in the same room and feel the affection
expressed by family, friends, and customers.
A successful plans-built airplane must have builder sup-
port, and that's where an organized builder community can
help. The Eagler's Nest at
www.EaglersNest.com/forum/
is an online community of builders and owners with 456
members and more than 3,000 posts covering more than 500
topics. The running slide show of completed Legal Eagle
projects may make you want to build one. There is also a
Ya-
hoo discussion group
for ½ VW engines. Sam Buchanan has
a
wonderful build site with detailed photos and text about
every aspect of his Legal Eagle XL project. The photos and
explanations add a lot to what is in the plans. Don't miss the
link to his flying videos. Sam previously built a Van's RV-6.
Les Homan brought his Legal Eagle XL to AirVenture
2014 all the way from California and won the top ultralight
award given by the judges in the Fun Fly Zone, as the Ul-
tralight/Lightplane area is now called. He has a lot of great
videos of Legal Eagle flying at
www.YouTube.com/user/
homanles/videos
and also some snippets from Leonard's fo-
rums at AirVenture. Les flew a Super Starduster biplane for
three years prior to the Legal Eagle.
Leonard and his builders have been bringing their air-
planes to EAA AirVenture, and he has been giving forums in
the Ultralight/Lightplane area for nearly 15 years. For some
reason, there are few news and magazine articles about his
airplanes. Leonard said the airplane doesn't get the recogni-
tion it deserves. Perhaps writers dismiss it as old-fashioned
and instead focus on the "jazzier" airplanes. Check out the
Legal Eagles in the Ultralight/Lightplane area next time you
come to AirVenture, and watch for news of Leonard's next
airplane, an enclosed cabin model with folding wings. Con-
tact Leonard at
Leonard@lemilholland.com .
Dan Grunloh has logged 1,200 hours in trikes, and he won the 2002 and
2004 U.S. National Microlight Championships in a trike.
LEGAL EAGLE XL SPECIFICATIONS
Empty weight: 246 pounds
Wingspan: 315 inches (26 feet 3 inches)
Wing chord: 55 inches
Wing area: 120.3 square feet
Gross weight: 575 pounds
Fuselage length: 193 inches (16 feet 1 inch)
Height: 75 inches (6 feet 3 inches)
Fuel capacity: 5 gallons
Propeller: Wood, 54-by-22
Engine: 30 hp Better Half VW
Stall speed: 27 mph
Takeoff distance: 250 feet
Leonard cutting his 90th birthday cake during EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2014.
Photography courtesy of Dan Grunloh