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The Meyers MAC-125 is a light sport aircraft developed in the United States in 1947, produced in a small series as the MAC-145.
[Taylor 1989, 654][Simpson 1995, 244-45]
Design and development
The basic design, common to both models, was that of a low-wing cantilever monoplane of all-metal construction with side-by-side seating for two in a fully enclosed cabin.
[Simpson 1995, 244] The main gear wheels of the undercarriage were retractable, and the tailwheel was steerable.
[Whetstone 1999] The aircraft structure incorporated a framework built up of welded steel tube which extended lengthwise from the engine firewall to the rear of the cabin, and spanwise from one undercarriage well to the other. Around this framework was a conventional, monocoque fuselage.
[Davisson 1989] The MAC-125 was powered by a single 125-hp engine while the MAC-145 production model had a 145-hp engine instead and a larger tail fin.
The first prototype was lost during spin testing for certification while being flown by Al Meyers.
Meyers parachuted to safety, sustaining a broken ankle,
and although the aircraft was destroyed, its steel inner structure was salvaged and used to build the second prototype.
Certification was subsequently successfully achieved with this aircraft.
Production and operations
Only twenty MAC-145s were built, each to a specific customer order, a business strategy that insulated the Meyers company from the poor market conditions that bankrupted many small American aircraft manufacturers in the late 1940s.
Production continued until 1955 when the larger, 4-seat Meyers 200 was certified and began production. The Meyers Aircraft Company was acquired by the Aero Commander division of
Rockwell International
Rockwell International was a major American manufacturing conglomerate involved in aircraft, the space industry, defense and commercial electronics, components in the automotive industry, printing presses, avionics and industrial products. R ...
in 1965.
The type was never produced by Rockwell, and the design again changed hands as part of the Meyers package when sold to
Interceptor Corporation
Interceptor Corporation was a US firm founded in Norman, Oklahoma to develop and market a turboprop-powered version of the Meyers 200, known as the Interceptor 400. In the early 1970s, the market was not yet ready for a turboprop-powered single-en ...
in 1968 and subsequently to
Prop-Jets Inc in 1982.
[Simpson 1995, 245]
The MAC-145 type certificate was subsequently acquired by the
Seminole Tribe of Florida
The Seminole Tribe of Florida is a federally recognized Seminole tribe based in the U.S. state of Florida. Together with the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma and the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida, it is one of three federally recognized Semi ...
, who flew a highly modified version of the design in 1997 as the
Micco SP-20.
[Ibold 2005][Micco's SP20 Takes Wing!]
Examples of Meyers-built MAC-145s are still active in 2011.
Variants
* MAC-125 - prototypes with
Continental C125
The Continental C115, C125 and C140 aircraft engines were made by Continental Motors in the 1940s, all sharing the US military designation O-280. Of flat-6 configuration, the engines produced 115 hp (86 kW) 125 hp (93 kW) or ...
engine (2 built)
* MAC-145 - production version with
Continental C145 engine (20 built)
Specifications (MAC-145)
See also
Notes
References
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External links
{{commons category-inline, Meyers 145
Meyers "145" – Flying
1940s United States sport aircraft
MAC-145
Single-engined tractor aircraft
Low-wing aircraft
Aircraft first flown in 1947