The Preceptor N3 Pup is a family of ultralight,

tube-and-fabric Tube-and-fabric construction is a method of building airframes, which include the fuselages and wings of airplanes. It consists of making a framework of metal tubes (generally welded together) and then covering the framework with an aircraft fabri ...

, high-wing,

homebuilt 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 ...

. Kits were produced and marketed by Preceptor Aircraft, of

Rutherfordton, North Carolina Rutherfordton (usually pronounced ( ) or ( ), among other similar variations) is a town in Rutherford County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 4,213 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat. Geography Rutherfordton is concentrate ...

.Vandermeullen, Richard: ''2012 Kit Aircraft Buyer's Guide'', Kitplanes, Volume 28, Number 12, December 2011, page 65-66. Belvoir Publications. ISSN 0891-1851Downey, Julia: ''2008 Kit Aircraft Directory'', Kitplanes, Volume 24, Number 12, December 2007, page 65. Primedia Publications. ISSN 0891-1851Cliche, Andre: ''Ultralight Aircraft Shopper's Guide'' 8th Edition, page B-42. Cybair Limited Publishing, 2001. Downey, Julia: ''1999 Kit Aircraft Directory'', Kitplanes, Volume 15, Number 12, December 1998, page 62. Primedia Publications. ISSN 0891-1851Purdy, Don: ''AeroCrafter - Homebuilt Aircraft Sourcebook'', page 224-225 and 326. BAI Communications. Tacke, Willi; Marino Boric; et al: ''World Directory of Light Aviation 2015-16'', page 121. Flying Pages Europe SARL, 2015. The company was operating on a limited basis, actively selling plans online, but seems to have gone out of business in 2016. Designed to meet

FAR 103 Ultralight Vehicles Ultralight aircraft in the United States are much smaller and lighter than ultralight aircraft as defined by all other countries. In the United States, ultralights are described as "ultralight vehicles" and not as aircraft. They are not requ ...

standards, the N3 Pup can accept various lightweight four stroke engines of between . If built to specifications with minimal additions, it can meet the requirements for a FAR 103 ultralight aircraft, with an empty weight of . It may also be built as an amateur-built aircraft or US

light-sport aircraft A light-sport aircraft (LSA), or light sport aircraft, is a fairly new category of small, lightweight aircraft that are simple to fly. LSAs tend to be heavier and more sophisticated than ultralight (aka "microlight") aircraft, but LSA restrictio ...

at higher weights.

Design and development

The Pup is designed to be flown cross-country and also can be mounted with floats and skis. The N3 Pup uses

construction and a conventional 4-cycle engine. The

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 ...

and tail are welded from

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 ...

tube. There are two main wing configurations that can be built. 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 ...

wing spar with hinges allows the wings to be folded for trailering or storage. A wooden wing spar configuration gives the plane a lighter weight, but leaves the wings fixed. The

engine cowling A cowling is the removable covering of a vehicle's engine, most often found on automobiles, motorcycles, airplanes, and on outboard boat motors. On airplanes, cowlings are used to reduce drag and to cool the engine. On boats, cowlings are a cove ...

is made from

fiberglass Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass (Commonwealth English) is a common type of fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened into a sheet called a chopped strand mat, or woven into glass cloth ...

. The aircraft has had many engine choices available, but was marketed to use the Half VW engine first developed by Global engines, later bought by Mosler engines and finally marketed by TEC engines. The

Total Engine Concepts MM CB-40 Total Engine Concepts MM CB-40 is a four-stroke, two-cylinder, Half VW aircraft engine. Design and development The engine was progressively developed designed around Volkswagen air-cooled engine components. Global Motors originally designed a Hal ...

was the last purpose-built engine marketed for the Pup. The aircraft was sold as a partially prefabricated kit or can be built scratchbuilt from plans. The design was also adapted as an autogyro, the Little Wing Roto-Pup.

Operational history

A N3 Pup named "Citabriette" -- modified to look like a

Citabria The Citabria is a light single-engine, two-seat, fixed conventional gear airplane which entered production in the United States in 1964. Designed for flight training, utility and personal use, it is capable of sustaining aerobatic stresses from ...

-- won the Grand Champion Ultralight award at the EAA Oshkosh airshow 1988.

Variants

;N3 Pup :Single seat variant designed to resemble a 3/4 scale Piper J-3 Cub. Originally named the Nostalgair N-3 Pup. Engine is a TEC Half VW of . Meets FAR 103 requirements with an empty weight of and gross weight of . 830 had been completed by December 2011. ; Stinger :Single seat variant with a parasol wing in place of the enclosed cabin, longer nose and larger engine. First flown in 1995. Engine is a

Volkswagen air-cooled engine The Volkswagen air-cooled engine is an air-cooled, gasoline-fuelled, boxer engine with four horizontally opposed cast-iron cylinders, cast aluminum alloy cylinder heads and pistons, magnesium-alloy crankcase, and forged steel crankshaft and co ...

of . Gross weight of . Two had been completed by December 2011. ;Super Pup :Single seat variant with larger engine and higher empty weight, first flown in 1995. Engine is a

of . Empty weight of and gross weight of . 55 had been completed and flown by December 2011. ;Ultra Pup (N3-2) :Two seat 3/4 scale Piper J-3 Cub, first flown in 1988 with a MM-CB engine. Production engine is a

of . Empty weight of and gross weight of . Folding wings for storage or ground transport. 200 had been completed and flown by December 2011.Bayerl, Robby; Martin Berkemeier; et al: ''World Directory of Leisure Aviation 2011-12'', page 115. WDLA UK, Lancaster UK, 2011. ISSN 1368-485X

Specifications (N3 Pup)

References

External links

{{Preceptor Aircraft Homebuilt aircraft Light-sport aircraft N3 1990s United States sport aircraft 1990s United States ultralight aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft