The Stolp-Adams SA-100 Starduster is an American single-seat sport
biplane
A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two main wings stacked one above the other. The first powered, controlled aeroplane to fly, the Wright Flyer, used a biplane wing arrangement, as did many aircraft in the early years of aviation. While ...
designed to be
built from plans supplied by
Aircraft Spruce & Specialty Co
Aircraft Spruce & Specialty Co. is an American producer of aircraft parts and services including plans for homebuilt aircraft.
History
Aircraft Spruce Co. was founded in 1965 by Bob and Flo Irwin as a follow-on to founding Fullerton Air Parts ...
. Though the first flight was in 1957, Stardusters continue to be built and flown.
Design and development
The SA-100 Starduster was designed by Louis A. Stolp and George M. Adams as a light sports aircraft for
homebuilding from plans. It is a
single bay biplane with
fabric covered, wooden framed
staggered wings, each pair braced by a single, wide chord
interplane strut
In aeronautics, bracing comprises additional structural members which stiffen the functional airframe to give it rigidity and strength under load. Bracing may be applied both internally and externally, and may take the form of strut, which act in ...
aided by
bracing wires. A total of eight centre section
strut
A strut is a structural component commonly found in engineering, aeronautics, architecture and anatomy. Struts generally work by resisting longitudinal compression, but they may also serve in tension.
Human anatomy
Part of the functionality o ...
s join the upper wing to the fuselage, basically two pairs in N-form but with the forward strut doubled. The lower wing is unswept and has 1.5° of
dihedral; the upper wing has 6° of sweep on its leading edge, no dihedral and a greater span. There are
aileron
An aileron (French for "little wing" or "fin") is a hinged flight control surface usually forming part of the trailing edge of each wing of a fixed-wing aircraft. Ailerons are used in pairs to control the aircraft in roll (or movement around ...
s on the lower wings only, but no flaps.
[
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 unit have a fabric covered steel tube structure, with the open cockpit positioned just behind the swept upper wing trailing edge which has a rounded cut-out for upward visibility. There is a long and prominent faired headrest behind the cockpit, on top of the curved upper fuselage surface. The Starduster has a conventional tail unit, with a wire braced tailplane
A tailplane, also known as a horizontal stabiliser, is a small lifting surface located on the tail (empennage) behind the main lifting surfaces of a fixed-wing aircraft as well as other non-fixed-wing aircraft such as helicopters and gyroplane ...
and straight tapered, round topped fin
A fin is a thin component or appendage attached to a larger body or structure. Fins typically function as foils that produce lift or thrust, or provide the ability to steer or stabilize motion while traveling in water, air, or other fluids. Fin ...
and rudder
A rudder is a primary control surface used to steer a ship, boat, submarine, hovercraft, aircraft, or other vehicle that moves through a fluid medium (generally aircraft, air or watercraft, water). On an aircraft the rudder is used primarily to ...
, the latter extending to the keel between split elevators
An elevator or lift is a cable-assisted, hydraulic cylinder-assisted, or roller-track assisted machine that vertically transports people or freight between floors, levels, or decks of a building, vessel, or other structure. They are ...
. Both rudder and elevators are horn balanced.[
The Starduster has a recommended power range of and is usually powered by a four-cylinder, horizontally opposed, 125 hp (93 kW) Lycoming O-290-D-1,][ though more powerful engines of up to 200 hp (150 kW) have been fitted.][ It has a conventional tailwheel undercarriage. The mainwheels are mounted on V-struts hinged from the lower fuselage longeron, with rubber shock absorbers on diagonal extension struts between wheel and a short, central, under fuselage V-form mounting bracket. The main legs are often partially or completely faired and the wheels enclosed in spats.][
]
Operational history
Starduster plans remain available more than 50 years after the first flight and homebuilding building continues.[ A Starduster register][ currently shows 27 SA-100 Stardusters and 3 SA-101 Super Stardusters built and building. The FAA register shows 64 SA-100s and 1 SA-101, though not all are assigned and some further Stardusters appear without a type number.][
]
Variants
;SA-100 Starduster
:Original version, designed for non-aerobatic flight. Although many have proven stress to +6g -4G and a Vne
In aviation, V-speeds are standard terms used to define airspeeds important or useful to the operation of all aircraft. These speeds are derived from data obtained by aircraft designers and manufacturers during flight testing for aircraft type- ...
of 185 kn[Tacke, Willi; Marino Boric; et al: ''World Directory of Light Aviation 2015–16'', page 128. Flying Pages Europe SARL, 2015. ]
;SA-101 Stolp Super Starduster
:Larger and more powerful — uses the longer wings of the CA300 Starduster Too, which have a symmetric M6 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.
...
and no dihedral, together with a 180 hp (134 kW) Lycoming I0-360-A1A engine to produce a maximum speed of over 170 mph (275 km/h).[
]
Specifications (SA-100)
See also
References
{{Stolp aircraft
Starduster
1950s United States sport aircraft
Single-engined tractor aircraft
Biplanes
Aircraft first flown in 1957