Kitplanes articles from December 1999

Kitplanes archives from December 1999

LETTERS.
December 1, 1999... Keep those "Completions" coming Congratulations on a great September issue. We particularly enjoyed the 85 "Completions" reports. It is truly inspiring to see airplanes that people have actually finished and are flying. It is also great...

Upgrades that Count.
December 1, 1999... Lancair's new Legacy 2000 moves in the right directions. Bigger. Better. Faster. Farther. For most airplane companies, that's the credo for progress as new models are developed. Lancair International certainly had these concepts in mind...

KITPLANES' NEW PRODUCTS.
December 1, 1999... Notebook Computer Instrument Panel The notebook computer instrument panel system from LaFave Engineering consists of an analog module that interfaces with system sensors and outputs data over a serial bus for graphical display on a PC...

Swedish Mosquito creates a buzz in America.
December 1, 1999... No challenger even comes close! The absolute lightest-of-all powered ultralights has to be the Swedish Aerosports Mosquito mated to a choice of hang glider wings. At maximum takeoff weight, this ultralight weighs a mere 370 pounds including a...

Fiscal frugality finances flights of fancy.
December 1, 1999... In the early '80s, I did a lot of cross-country flying in my Pterodactyl ultralight. When I needed to refuel and get something to eat, I looked for a truck stop, landed in a nearby field--or the parking lot if it was big and empty--and taxied...

The Little Radio that Could.
December 1, 1999... The Microair 760: big-radio features in a tiny package. Let's take a trip down Nostalgia Lane. My first experience working on aircraft radios was in my high school days on the venerable old Narco Superhomer. I think the statute of...

The Paturi Solution.
December 1, 1999... Check out this two-seat amphibian from Brazil. This little side-by-side amphibian is called Paturi in Brazil and Seastar in Canada. The design began as a single-place ultralight amphibian called Hydroplum that is powered by a 40-hp Hirth...

2000 Kit Aircraft Directory.
December 1, 1999... We begin year 2000 with the 16th annual directory of kit aircraft that lists more than 700 designs in three consecutive issues. This issue contains details for 440 kits including 62 rotorcraft and 14 aircraft that are in development....

The Rotorcraft.
December 1, 1999... Rotorcraft are again listed in a separate section of our kit aircraft directory, which is growing every year. Sixty-two helicopters and gyroplanes are displayed, up from 46 two years ago. There are basic differences between helicopters...

In Development.
December 1, 1999... Let's look into the future. After you've surveyed the commercially available kits, it might be interesting to take a quick view of projects waiting in the wings. When this In Development group was established in 1997, there were 10 designs...

AIRCRAFT CROSS REFERENCE.
December 1, 1999... DESIGN AIRCRAFT CO. Acro 1 Aircraft Technologies, Inc. Acroduster Too SA 750 Stolp Starduster Corp. Aerobat [Bradley] Bradley Aerospace Aerobat +P...

AIRCRAFT COMPANY WEB & E-MAIL ADDRESSES.
December 1, 1999... AIRCRAFT COMPANY WEB ADDRESS A.S.A.P. www.ultralight.ca AAC Amphibian Airplanes of Canada Ltd A-B Helicopters www.3cats.com/aw95 Ace Aircraft Co., Inc. ...

Kit airplanes race for gold at Reno, Nevada.
December 1, 1999... Homebuilt aircraft continue to amaze aviation fans. This year at the National Championship Air Races (held September 16-19 at the Reno-Stead Airport about 10 miles north of Reno, Nevada), a few select high-performance machines and their...

Stop Stalling.
December 1, 1999... There is more than one way to stallproof an airplane. Every year people are killed or injured in accidental stallspins, often in that sometimes deceptive turn from base to final. As a result, the FAA has repeatedly been urged to outlaw...

The Silver Bullet flops.
December 1, 1999... OK. I guess it is time for this "Engine Beat" columnist to come out of the closet/dyno room and let you know what bugs him the most. I love innovations that increase reliability and economy at an affordable price, but I am weary of promoters...

This month, we build a VHF nav antenna.
December 1, 1999... Last month we looked at an easy-to-make com antenna. This month let's tackle the nav equivalent of that com antenna. Before we do the antenna, though, let's talk for just a minute about this radio band. Where Are We? The VHF nav...