The Lancair Sentry is an American

amateur-built aircraft Homebuilt aircraft, also known as amateur-built aircraft or kit planes, are constructed by persons for whom this is not a professional activity. These aircraft may be constructed from "scratch", from plans, or from assembly kits.Armstrong, Kenn ...

that was designed and produced by Lancair of Redmond, Oregon, introduced in 2002. The aircraft was supplied as a kit for amateur construction, although it was also intended as a production military trainer aircraft. First flown in September 2001, only two were ever completed. The design was intended to compete with other similar two-seat civil designs, such as the

Thunder Mustang The Thunder Mustang is a modern 0.75 scale replica of the P-51 Mustang. It has joined the ranks of the high-performance P-51 kits alongside the Titan Aircraft T-51, which has a welded steel airframe with a secondary monocoque aluminum shell, the ...

and the

Turbine Legend The Performance Turbine Legend is an American sports monoplane designed by Performance Aircraft for sale as a kit for amateur construction.Vandermeullen, Richard: ''2012 Kit Aircraft Buyer's Guide'', Kitplanes, Volume 28, Number 12, December 2 ...

. Military sales prospects included the Mexican Navy, but no orders were forthcoming.

Design and development

The Sentry is a two-seat development of the four-seat

Lancair IV The Lancair IV and IV-P are a family of four-seat, low-wing, retractable-gear, composite monoplanes powered by a 550 cubic inch Continental TSIO-550 twin-turbocharged piston engine.Vandermeullen, Richard: ''2011 Kit Aircraft Buyer's Guide'', K ...

, with the door-accessed cabin replaced by a canopy. It also has an enlarged vertical tail fin. The aircraft features a cantilever low-wing, a two-seats-in- tandem enclosed cockpit under a rear-hinged bubble canopy, retractable

tricycle landing gear Tricycle gear is a type of aircraft undercarriage, or ''landing gear'', arranged in a tricycle fashion. The tricycle arrangement has a single nose wheel in the front, and two or more main wheels slightly aft of the center of gravity. Tricycle g ...

and a single engine in tractor configuration. The aircraft is made from

composite materials A composite material (also called a composition material or shortened to composite, which is the common name) is a material which is produced from two or more constituent materials. These constituent materials have notably dissimilar chemical or ...

, predominantly

carbon fiber reinforced polymer Carbon fiber-reinforced polymers (American English), carbon-fibre-reinforced polymers (Commonwealth English), carbon-fiber-reinforced plastics, carbon-fiber reinforced-thermoplastic (CFRP, CRP, CFRTP), also known as carbon fiber, carbon compo ...

. Its span wing employs a McWilliams RXM5-217 root

airfoil An airfoil (American English) or aerofoil (British English) is the cross-sectional shape of an object whose motion through a gas is capable of generating significant lift, such as a wing, a sail, or the blades of propeller, rotor, or turbine. ...

, tapering to a NACA 64-212 tip airfoil. The wing has an area of and mounts flaps. The standard engine used is the

Walter M601D The Walter M601 is a turboprop aircraft engine produced by Walter Aircraft Engines of the Czech Republic. The company's first turboprop, the M601 is used in business, agricultural and military training aircraft. Development The turboprop was ...

turboprop A turboprop is a turbine engine that drives an aircraft propeller. A turboprop consists of an intake, reduction gearbox, compressor, combustor, turbine, and a propelling nozzle. Air enters the intake and is compressed by the compressor. Fuel ...

powerplant powering an American three-bladed

Hartzell Propeller Hartzell Propeller is an American manufacturer that was founded in 1917 by Robert N. Hartzell as the Hartzell Walnut Propeller Company. It produces composite and aluminum propellers for certified, homebuilt, and ultralight aircraft. The compan ...

or a Czech

Avia Propeller Avia Motors s.r.o. is a Czech automotive manufacturer. It was founded in 1919 as an aircraft maker, and diversified into trucks after 1945. As an aircraft maker it was notable for producing biplane fighter aircraft, especially the B-534. Avia c ...

Specifications (Sentry)

References

External links

Photo of a Sentry
{{Lancair aircraft

Lancair aircraft Lancair International, Inc. (pronounced ''"lance-air"'') is a U.S. manufacturer of general aviation aircraft kits. They are well known for their series of high-performance single-engine aircraft that offer cruise speeds that surpass many tw ...

2000s United States sport aircraft 2000s United States civil utility aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft Low-wing aircraft Homebuilt aircraft Aircraft first flown in 2002