The Ultralite Soaring Wizard is an American
ultralight aircraft
Ultralight aviation (called microlight aviation in some countries) is the flying of lightweight, 1- or 2-seat fixed-wing aircraft. Some countries differentiate between weight-shift control and conventional three-axis control aircraft with ailer ...
that was designed and produced by
Ultralite Soaring Inc. The aircraft was supplied as a kit for
amateur construction.
[Cliche, Andre: ''Ultralight Aircraft Shopper's Guide'' 8th Edition, page E-44 and E-45. Cybair Limited Publishing, 2001. ]
Design and development
Developed from the
Eipper Quicksilver E, the Wizard was designed before the introduction of 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 req ...
rules, but complies with them, including the category's maximum empty weight of . The W1 model has a standard empty weight of . It features a
cable-braced 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 ...
, a single-seat, open cockpit,
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 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 ...
. It differs from the Quicksilver primarily in the configuration of the tail boom tubes and the use of drooped
wing tip
A wing tip (or wingtip) is the part of the wing that is most distant from the fuselage of a fixed-wing aircraft.
Because the wing tip shape influences the size and drag of the wingtip vortices, tip design has produced a diversity of sha ...
s.
The Wizard is made from bolted-together
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 ...
tubing, with its flying surfaces covered in
Dacron
Polyethylene terephthalate (or poly(ethylene terephthalate), PET, PETE, or the obsolete PETP or PET-P), is the most common thermoplastic polymer resin of the polyester family and is used in fibres for clothing, containers for liquids and foods ...
sailcloth. Its single-surface span wing has its cabling supported by a single tube style
kingpost
A king post (or king-post or kingpost) is a central vertical post used in architectural or bridge designs, working in tension to support a beam below from a truss apex above (whereas a crown post, though visually similar, supports items above fro ...
. The
landing gear
Landing gear is the undercarriage of an aircraft or spacecraft that is used for takeoff or landing. For aircraft it is generally needed for both. It was also formerly called ''alighting gear'' by some manufacturers, such as the Glenn L. Martin ...
uses tube flexing for suspension and features a fixed nose wheel. On the early models the pilot is accommodated on a sling seat suspended from the main wing keel tube, to allow weight-shift control. The standard engine supplied was the single cylinder,
two-stroke
A two-stroke (or two-stroke cycle) engine is a type of internal combustion engine that completes a Thermodynamic power cycle, power cycle with two strokes (up and down movements) of the piston during one power cycle, this power cycle being comple ...
Yamaha KT-100S
The Yamaha KT100 is a 100 cc two-stroke cycle kart engine made by Yamaha that has also been adapted for ultralight aircraft use.Cliche, Andre: ''Ultralight Aircraft Shopper's Guide'' 8th Edition, page G-8 Cybair Limited Publishing, 2001 ...
of , although a
Kawasaki 440
The Kawasaki 440, also called the T/A 440, is a Japanese twin-cylinder, in-line, two-stroke engine that was designed for snowmobiles and produced by Kawasaki Heavy Industries until the early 1980s.Cliche, Andre: ''Ultralight Aircraft Shopper's G ...
snowmobile
A snowmobile, also known as a Ski-Doo, snowmachine, sled, motor sled, motor sledge, skimobile, or snow scooter, is a motorized vehicle designed for winter travel and recreation on snow. It is designed to be operated on snow and ice and does not ...
engine producing was optional.
The Wizard was commercially successful and a large number were completed and flown.
Construction time from the supplied assembly kit is about 100 hours.
Variants
;Wizard W1
:Initial model with a weight-shift control system and no aerodynamic controls.
;Wizard J2
:Improved model with a hybrid control system, utilizing weight-shift plus
spoilers for roll control and an
elevator
An elevator or lift is a wire rope, cable-assisted, hydraulic cylinder-assisted, or roller-track assisted machine that vertically transports people or freight between floors, levels, or deck (building), decks of a building, watercraft, ...
for pitch control.
;Wizard J-3
:Three axis control version with elevator, rudder and spoilers. Standard powerplant supplied was the
Kawasaki 440
The Kawasaki 440, also called the T/A 440, is a Japanese twin-cylinder, in-line, two-stroke engine that was designed for snowmobiles and produced by Kawasaki Heavy Industries until the early 1980s.Cliche, Andre: ''Ultralight Aircraft Shopper's G ...
snowmobile engine producing . This model introduced a fixed seat, steerable nose wheel and brakes. Empty weight , gross weight . Very similar to the
Eipper Quicksilver MX
Quicksilver is a line of single and two-place high wing, single-engine, ultralight aircraft that evolved from weight-shift hang gliders including Bob Lovejoy's High Tailer.
The earliest powered version, the Quicksilver C, was created as a se ...
.
;Wizard J-3 Magnum
:Three axis control version with elevator, rudder and
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. Standard powerplant supplied was the
Kawasaki 440
The Kawasaki 440, also called the T/A 440, is a Japanese twin-cylinder, in-line, two-stroke engine that was designed for snowmobiles and produced by Kawasaki Heavy Industries until the early 1980s.Cliche, Andre: ''Ultralight Aircraft Shopper's G ...
snowmobile engine producing .
;Wizard T3
:Two seat model.
Aircraft on display
*
Museo del Aire,
Madrid
Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...
,
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
- T3 two seat model
Specifications (Wizard W1)
See also
*
Laron Wizard
The Laron Wizard is an American homebuilt aircraft produced by Laron Aviation Tech of Borger, Texas. When it was available the aircraft was supplied as a kit for amateur construction.Purdy, Don: ''AeroCrafter - Homebuilt Aircraft Sourcebook, F ...
, a different aircraft with the same model name
References
{{reflist
External links
Photo of a Wizard W1 in flightPhoto of a Wizard T3 in the Museo de Aeronautica Y Astronautica
1970s United States ultralight aircraft
Homebuilt aircraft
Single-engined pusher aircraft