The St Andrews Viking is a family of

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

powered parachute A powered parachute, often abbreviated PPC, and also called a motorized parachute or paraplane, is a type of aircraft that consists of a parafoil with a motor and wheels. The FAA defines a powered parachute as ''a powered aircraft a flexible o ...

s that was designed and manufactured by St Andrews Aviation of

Panama City, Florida Panama City is a city in and the county seat of Bay County, Florida, United States. Located along U.S. Highway 98 (US 98), it is the largest city between Tallahassee and Pensacola. It is the more populated city of the Panama City–Lynn Ha ...

and later produced by Viking Aircraft Inc., also of Panama City.Cliche, Andre: ''Ultralight Aircraft Shopper's Guide'' 8th Edition, page D-18. Cybair Limited Publishing, 2001. Downey, Julia: ''2005 Trikes 'Chutes and Rotorcraft Directory'', Kitplanes, Volume 22, Number 2, February 2005, page 53. Belvoir Publications. ISSN 0891-1851Bertrand, Noel; Rene Coulon; et al: ''World Directory of Leisure Aviation 2003-04'', page 88. Pagefast Ltd, Lancaster OK, 2003. ISSN 1368-485X

Design and development

The two-seat Viking II was designed to comply with the US

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 ...

two-seat trainer rules. It features a

parachute A parachute is a device used to slow the motion of an object through an atmosphere by creating drag or, in a ram-air parachute, aerodynamic lift. A major application is to support people, for recreation or as a safety device for aviators, who ...

-style

high-wing A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft configuration with a single mainplane, in contrast to a biplane or other types of multiplanes, which have multiple planes. A monoplane has inherently the highest efficiency and lowest drag of any wing confi ...

, two-seats-in-

side-by-side configuration Tandem, or in tandem, is an arrangement in which a team of machines, animals or people are lined up one behind another, all facing in the same direction. The original use of the term in English was in ''tandem harness'', which is used for two ...

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

Rotax 503 The Rotax 503 is a , inline 2-cylinder, two-stroke aircraft engine, built by BRP-Rotax GmbH & Co. KG of Austria for use in ultralight aircraft.Raisner, William: ''LEAF catlog'', pages 6-105. Leading Edge Airfoils, 1995. As of 2011 the Ro ...

engine in

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 ...

. The 2si 690-L70 engine was a factory option. The aircraft is built from tubing and includes a partial

cockpit fairing An aircraft fairing is a structure whose primary function is to produce a smooth outline and reduce drag.Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Terms, Third Edition'', page 206. Aviation Supplies & Academics Inc, Newcastle Washington, 1997. ...

. The side-by-side seating configuration is unusual in powered parachutes, but was intended to make dual instruction easier. In flight steering is accomplished via dual foot pedals that actuate the canopy brakes, creating roll and yaw. On the ground the aircraft has a center-mounted bicycle handlebar that controls the nosewheel steering. The main landing gear incorporates steel spring rod suspension. The aircraft was factory supplied in the form of an assembly kit or could be delivered ready-to-fly.

Variants

;Viking I :Single seat version introduced in March 2000, that sold for US$10,900 complete and ready-to-fly in 2001. ;

Viking II The ''Viking 2'' mission was part of the American Viking program to Mars, and consisted of an orbiter and a lander essentially identical to that of the ''Viking 1'' mission. ''Viking 2'' was operational on Mars for sols ( days; '). The ''Vik ...

:Two-seats-in-side-by-side configuration version introduced in 1998, that sold for US$12,000 complete and ready-to-fly, US$10,000 complete but unassembled or US$4,300 for the carriage kit only, less engine and canopy, in 2001.

Specifications (Viking II)

References

{{reflist

External links

Viking archives
on

Archive.org The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...

1990s United States ultralight aircraft Single-engined pusher aircraft Powered parachutes