The Kolb Flyer is an American single seat, high wing,

strut-braced 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 ...

, twin-engine,

pusher configuration In an aircraft with a pusher configuration (as opposed to a tractor configuration), the propeller(s) are mounted behind their respective engine(s). Since a pusher propeller is mounted behind the engine, the drive shaft is in compression in nor ...

conventional landing gear Conventional landing gear, or tailwheel-type landing gear, is an aircraft undercarriage consisting of two main wheels forward of the center of gravity and a small wheel or skid to support the tail.Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Term ...

-equipped

ultralight aircraft Ultralight aviation (called microlight aviation in some countries) is the flying of lightweight, 1- or 2-seat fixed-wing aircraft. Some countries differentiate between weight-shift control and conventional three-axis control aircraft with ailer ...

that was produced in kit form by

Kolb Aircraft Kolb may refer to: * Kolb (surname), a German surname * Kolb, Wisconsin, United States, an unincorporated community * Kolb Aircraft Company, an American aircraft manufacturer * Kolb Studio, a historic structure in Grand Canyon Village, Arizona, U ...

Phoenixville, Pennsylvania Phoenixville is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough in Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located northwest of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia at the junction of French Creek (Schuylkill River tributary), French Creek and ...

, and intended for amateur construction.Cliche, Andre: ''Ultralight Aircraft Shopper's Guide'' 8th Edition, page E-20. Cybair Limited Publishing, 2001. The Flyer was the first design produced by

. Based on the Flyer's success, the company and its successor,

New Kolb Aircraft Kolb Aircraft Company is an American aircraft manufacturer that produces kitplanes for amateur construction.Cliche, Andre: ''Ultralight Aircraft Shopper's Guide'' 8th Edition, page E-20, 21. Cybair Limited Publishing, 2001. Downey, Julia: ''1 ...

, have gone on to produce over 3000 aircraft as of 2010.

Design and development

The Flyer was a very early ultralight design that first flew in 1970. The first aircraft designed by Homer Kolb, it was ahead of its time and was not produced commercially until 1980, when the ultralight boom hit North America. The Flyer is a very light and simple aircraft with a standard empty weight of only . It features a completely open cockpit with the pilot exposed to the slipstream. Unusually for this period in aircraft history when most ultralights had two-axis control, the Flyer has standard three-axis controls, including half span

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. When the Flyer was designed there were no suitable lightweight engines available, so the prototype aircraft first fitted

Chrysler Stellantis North America (officially FCA US and formerly Chrysler ()) is one of the " Big Three" automobile manufacturers in the United States, headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan. It is the American subsidiary of the multinational automoti ...

powerplants. Later these were exchanged for Solo 209 engines producing each. The small Solo engines make the Flyer a very quiet aircraft in flight. The design features a forward

fuselage The fuselage (; from the French ''fuselé'' "spindle-shaped") is an aircraft's main body section. It holds crew, passengers, or cargo. In single-engine aircraft, it will usually contain an engine as well, although in some amphibious aircraft t ...

of welded

4130 steel 41xx steel is a family of SAE steel grades, as specified by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE). Alloying elements include chromium and molybdenum, and as a result these materials are often informally referred to as chromoly steel (common ...

tubing, mated to an

aluminum Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately one third that of steel. It has ...

tailboom. The

horizontal stabilizer A tailplane, also known as a horizontal stabiliser, is a small lifting surface located on the tail (empennage) behind the main lifting surfaces of a fixed-wing aircraft as well as other non-fixed-wing aircraft such as helicopters and gyroplan ...

, tail fin and wings are also constructed of riveted aluminum tubing with all flying surfaces covered in doped

aircraft fabric Aircraft fabric covering is a term used for both the material used and the process of covering aircraft open structures. It is also used for reinforcing closed plywood structures. The de Havilland Mosquito is an example of this technique, as are ...

. The conventional landing gear consists of sprung steel tubing for the main gear, with a sprung tail skid. The Flyer was later improved and developed into a single engine aircraft, the

Kolb Ultrastar The Kolb Ultrastar is an American single seat, high wing, strut-braced, single engine, pusher configuration, conventional landing gear-equipped ultralight aircraft that was produced in kit form by Kolb Aircraft of Phoenixville, Pennsylvania ...

, which succeeded it in production in 1982.

Specifications (Flyer)

References

External links

Photos of Kolb Flyer
{{Kolb Aircraft Flyer 1970s United States ultralight aircraft

Design and development

Specifications (Flyer)

See also

References

External links