L i g h t P l a n e Wor l d
Greenwing International. Two examples were flown
at air show center during the main air show, and the
company is now accepting orders. The airframe is
based on the Flight Design's Spyder designed by Tom
Peghiny, but it has been extensively reworked for electric power. It will be an amateur-built kit in the United
States for now, but Greenwing will certify the aircraft
as an S-LSA once they have some experience with
the first 25 airplanes. The price is $39,995, and it will
require a private pilot certificate until we can get the
FAA to correct a glitch in the regulations. Sport pilots
are currently limited to reciprocating engines.
Spectators waiting for the frst takeof from the Ultralight runway on
Monday evening.
Greenwing International is now accepting orders for the electricpowered eSpyder.
Another first is the announcement that the new owners of
Quicksilver (the oldest manufacturer of ultralights) have
teamed up with Brian Carpenter of Rainbow Aviation to
develop an electric aircraft called the Quicksilver EMG, beginning with a primary glider-style airframe using the wings
of a Quicksilver GT 400. Brian gave a talk on the project in
the Ultralight Forums tent. A twin-engine-powered version
will follow and also a two-place trainer. Brian's vision is for
an adaptable airframe that can be developed into several
different configurations. Construction is underway, and
flight testing will begin soon.
The third new development is more subtle but was widely
noticed by the pilots flying internal combustion engines
in the Fun Fly Zone. Mark Beierle of Earthstar Aircraft
brought his electric Thundergull, or eGull, to AirVenture
again, but now with a new electric motor rated at 55 hp
maximum. Each year the aircraft shows improvement. It
now flies routinely in the ultralight pattern for long periods of time, doing many takeoffs on a single charge. He
kept going around and around like all the rest of us until
we began to forget this was an electric airplane! That
will be the norm in the very near future. Look for more
stories about the eSpyder, Quicksilver EMG, and Earthstar eGull in EAA Experimenter.
Challenger Sweeps Judging Awards on 30th Anniversary
Quad City Challenger N10DZ, built by Don Zank, frst few from Illinois
to the Sun 'n Fun International Fly-In and Expo in Florida in 1989.
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Vol.2 N o.9 / September 2013
The Quad City Challenger design, arguably the most successful light plane of all time, with 4,000 aircraft completed and flown, is 30 years old this year. A record number
of Challengers, more than any other brand, were flown to
AirVenture 2013, including two examples on floats. The
Challenger kit-built airframe gives ample opportunities
for builders to display their craftsmanship skills, and as
a result all three top light plane judging awards went to
Challengers. See all the AirVenture 2013 judging results
here. Challengers are available in one- or two-seat versions and are registered as amateur-built aircraft. The
original ultralight version is also still available. The latest
model, XL-65, is optimized for the sport pilot category and