The Lesher Teal is a
home built experimental aircraft that at one point held seven
Federation Aeronautique Internationale
A federation (also known as a federal state) is a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a central federal government ( federalism). In a federation, the self-govern ...
(FAI) class is C-l.a records for speed and distance.
Design and development
The Teal was designed to beat the
Federation Aeronautique Internationale
A federation (also known as a federal state) is a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a central federal government ( federalism). In a federation, the self-govern ...
(FAI) class is C-l.a records for speed and distance.
Construction started in 1962. The aircraft was configured as an all-aluminum single-place aircraft with retractable landing gear, powered by a 100 hp
Continental O-200 engine driving a 64-inch
Hartzell ground-adjustable propeller. By 28 April 1965, the airframe was complete. On that day, Lesher made the aircraft's first flight at
Willow Run Airport. That August, he flew Teal to the 1965 EAA Fly-In in Rockford, Illinois, where he won an award from the EAA for his achievements.
Operational history
After two years of testing the Teal, Lesher flew the aircraft, on 22 May 1967, to a new 500 km closed-course Class C1a speed record of 181.55 mph. On 30 June 1967, he set a new 1,000 km closed-course speed record of 169.20 mph and on 220 October 1967, he set a new 2,000 km closed-course speed record of 141.84 mph.
[Pellegreno, Ann Holtgren, "Professor Lesher, Record-Setter", ''Air Trails Homebuilt Aircraft'', Summer 1970]
On 6 May 1968, while flying Teal near
Ann Arbor
Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female given name Anna (name), Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah (given name), Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie (given name), ...
, he experienced a loss of power. Not being able to make it to a nearby airport, he made an emergency landing in a field. The airplane was badly damaged, but he was unhurt.
After rebuilding Teal, on 9 September 1970, he set a new Class C1a closed-circuit distance record of 1554.29 miles. Later, on 29 September 1973 he set a new Class C1a 3 km speed record of 173.101 mph and the next day he set a new 15–25 km speed record of 169.134 mph. Finally, on 2 July 1975, he set a new Class C1a record for distance in a straight line by flying 1,835.459, flying from Florida to Arizona. He continued to fly Teal for many more years, but never made any more record attempts. For his record-breaking flights, he won the FAI's Louis Bleriot Medal four times
[Obituaries ''Ann Arbor News'' 22 May 1998] and was inducted in the Michigan Aviation Hall of Fame in 1988.
Enshrinees
Retrieved 27 July 2011.
The Teal was donated to the EAA Airventure Museum in 2002.[Lesher Teal – N4291C](_blank)
Retrieved 27 July 2011.
Specifications (Lesher Teal)
See also
References
* {{cite book , last=Taylor , first=John W. R. , authorlink=John W. R. Taylor , title=Jane's All The World's Aircraft 1967–68 , year=1967 , publisher=Sampson Low, Marston & Company , location=London
External links
General Aviation World Records
Picture of the Lesher Teal aircraft
Picture of the Lesher Teal aircraft
Picture of the Lesher Teal aircraft
Picture of the Lesher Teal aircraft
Homebuilt aircraft