The Jurca Gnatsum is a French
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 ...
near scale replica aircraft based on the
North American P-51 Mustang.
Design & Development
The Gnatsum (Mustang spelled backwards) is one of many wooden homebuilt designs from Romanian designer
Marcel Jurca
Marcel Jurca, (1921 – 19 October 2001) was a prolific designer of homebuilt aircraft in France. He is most well known for his Tempête and Sirocco designs.
Early life
Born in Romania, Jurca was impressed by the PZL fighters which often flew over ...
. Jurca, a
Henschel Hs 129 pilot in World War II, expanded his warbird replica designs to include the Allied
North American P-51 Mustang fighter.
The Gnatsum is a low-wing, cantilever monoplane with an enclosed single-seat cockpit and manually retractable tailwheel landing gear based on that of the
Jurca Sirocco. Suitable for a number of engines around , plans for the Gnatsum are available as the 2/3 scale MJ-7 and the 3/4 scale MJ-77, as well as the MJ-70 full-size representation. All versions are constructed from wood with fabric covering, and manufacturing rights to the kit aircraft were acquired by
Falconar Avia
Falconar Avia was a Canadian aircraft manufacturer based in Edmonton, Alberta. The company specialized in the design and manufacture of kits and plans for amateur construction.Purdy, Don: ''AeroCrafter - Homebuilt Aircraft Sourcebook'', page 1 ...
.
Plans for the MJ-77 are available from Avions Marcel Jurca.
Some of the engines suitable for the MJ-7 Gnatsum series are:-
*
Ranger 6-440
The Ranger L-440 (company designation 6-440C) are six-cylinder inline inverted air-cooled aero-engines produced by the Ranger/Fairchild Engines, Ranger Aircraft Engine Division of the Fairchild Aircraft, Fairchild Engine and Airplane Corporation ...
C-5 inline engine
*
Menasco C4
*
de Havilland Gipsy Major I
*
Rambler aluminum block in-line 6
*
General Motors aluminum V-8
Variants
;MJ-7
:2/3 scale variant
;MJ-7S Solo
:Single-seat advanced trainer version of MJ-7, the under-belly scoop inherited from the Mustang design was removed.
;MJ-77
:3/4 scale Mustang variant that requires an engine of .
[Bayerl, Robby; Martin Berkemeier; et al: ''World Directory of Leisure Aviation 2011-12'', page 94. WDLA UK, Lancaster UK, 2011. ISSN 1368-485X][Tacke, Willi; Marino Boric; et al: ''World Directory of Light Aviation 2015-16'', page 100. Flying Pages Europe SARL, 2015. ]
;MJ-70
:Full-scale variant (still under development in 2001 when Jurca died - never completed)
Specifications (Jurca MJ-77 Gnatsum)
See also
References
*
Janes.comMarcel Jurca old website
External links
*
Falconar Avia Website
{{Jurca aircraft
1960s French sport aircraft
Homebuilt aircraft
Gnatsum
Single-engined tractor aircraft
Low-wing aircraft
North American P-51 Mustang replicas
Aircraft first flown in 1969