The Dallach D.3 Sunwheel, also known as the WDFL Sunwheel and more recently the Fascination Sunwheel, is a fully

aerobatic Aerobatics is the practice of flying maneuvers involving aircraft attitudes that are not used in conventional passenger-carrying flights. The term is a portmanteau of "aerial" and "acrobatics". Aerobatics are performed in aeroplanes and glid ...

, single-engine, two-seat

biplane A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two main wings stacked one above the other. The first powered, controlled aeroplane to fly, the Wright Flyer, used a biplane wing arrangement, as did many aircraft in the early years of aviation. While ...

homebuilt Homebuilt machines are machines built outside of specialised workshops or factories. This can include different things such as kit cars or homebuilt computers, but normally it pertains to homebuilt aircraft, also known as amateur-built aircraft or ...

from kits. It was designed and marketed in Germany.

Design and development

This Wolfgang Dallach design, like his Dallach Sunrise, was marketed by WD Flugzeug Leichtbau (WDFL), the kits at least partly built in the Czech Republic by UL-Jih Sedláĉek Spol s.r.o. The Sunwheel is constructed from metal tube and is fabric covered. It is a

single bay A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two main wings stacked one above the other. The first powered, controlled aeroplane to fly, the Wright Flyer, used a biplane wing arrangement, as did many aircraft in the early years of aviation. While ...

biplane with a single I-form, faired interplane strut on each side. The wings are both swept and staggered. There are

aileron An aileron (French for "little wing" or "fin") is a hinged flight control surface usually forming part of the trailing edge of each wing of a fixed-wing aircraft. Ailerons are used in pairs to control the aircraft in roll (or movement around ...

s on both upper and lower wings, externally interconnected.

Cabane struts In aeronautics, bracing comprises additional structural members which stiffen the functional airframe to give it rigidity and strength under load. Bracing may be applied both internally and externally, and may take the form of strut, which act in c ...

support the upper wing over the tandem, open

cockpit A cockpit or flight deck is the area, usually near the front of an aircraft or spacecraft, from which a Pilot in command, pilot controls the aircraft. The cockpit of an aircraft contains flight instruments on an instrument panel, and the ...

s. The Sunwheel has a fixed tailwheel undercarriage, with the mainwheels hinged from the fuselage on V-form, cross-connected struts. Some Sunwheels have

wheel fairings An aircraft fairing is a structure whose primary function is to produce a smooth outline and reduce drag.Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Terms, Third Edition'', page 206. Aviation Supplies & Academics Inc, Newcastle Washington, 1997. ...

. The Sunwheel is usually powered either by a 60 kW (80 hp)

Rotax 912 UL The Rotax 912 is a horizontally-opposed four-cylinder, naturally aspirated, four-stroke aircraft engine with a reduction gearbox. It features liquid-cooled cylinder heads and air-cooled cylinders. Originally equipped with carburetors, later ...

flat four or a 48 kW (65 hp) Sauer ULM 2000 engine.

Operational history

48 Sunwheels appeared in mid-2010 on the civil registers of European countries excluding Russia. Reviewer Marino Boric said of the design in a 2015 review, "its sturdiness and its relatively low speeds make it practically indestructible in flight, though you will need something more powerful than a Rotax 912to make the most of its abilities."Tacke, Willi; Marino Boric; et al: ''World Directory of Light Aviation 2015-16'', page 50. Flying Pages Europe SARL, 2015.

Specifications (Rotax 912UL)

References

{{UL-Jih aircraft 1990s German sport aircraft UL-Jih aircraft Biplanes Single-engined tractor aircraft