The Vashon Ranger R7 is an American light-sport aircraft designed and produced by Vashon Aircraft of

Woodinville, Washington Woodinville is a city in King County, Washington, United States. It is a part of the Seattle metropolitan area. There is also a much larger population with Woodinville mailing addresses in adjacent unincorporated areas of King ( Cottage Lake) an ...

. It was formally introduced at the

AirVenture EAA AirVenture Oshkosh (formerly the EAA Annual Convention and Fly-In), or just Oshkosh, is an annual air show and gathering of aviation enthusiasts held each summer at Wittman Regional Airport and adjacent Pioneer Airport in Oshkosh, Wisconsi ...

airshow in Oshkosh, Wisconsin in July 2018. The aircraft is supplied complete ready-to-fly-aircraft.

Design and development

The development of the Ranger R7 started in about 2013. By February 2018 two prototypes were flying and four production aircraft were under construction, for April 2018 delivery. The aircraft is an all-metal

monocoque Monocoque ( ), also called structural skin, is a structural system in which loads are supported by an object's external skin, in a manner similar to an egg shell. The word ''monocoque'' is a French term for "single shell". First used for boats, ...

design and features a

cantilever A cantilever is a rigid structural element that extends horizontally and is supported at only one end. Typically it extends from a flat vertical surface such as a wall, to which it must be firmly attached. Like other structural elements, a cant ...

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 co ...

, a 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 ...

enclosed cabin, accessed by doors, fixed

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 ...

, with a castering nosewheel and a single engine in

tractor configuration In aviation, the term tractor configuration refers to an aircraft constructed in the standard configuration with its engine mounted with the propeller in front of it so that the aircraft is "pulled" through the air. Oppositely, the pusher co ...

. The aircraft is made from pre-painted sheet

6061-T6 aluminum 6061 ( Unified Numbering System (UNS) designation A96061) is a precipitation-hardened aluminium alloy, containing magnesium and silicon as its major alloying elements. Originally called "Alloy 61S", it was developed in 1935. It has good mechani ...

to save construction time. The seats fold flat to allow sleeping in the cabin when camping. The company manufactures the majority of parts itself to reduce costs and shorten the supply chain. By January 2018 the design had been accepted by the United States

Federal Aviation Administration The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is the largest transportation agency of the U.S. government and regulates all aspects of civil aviation in the country as well as over surrounding international waters. Its powers include air traffic ...

(FAA) as a light-sport aircraft.

Operational history

By May 2017, one example had been registered in the United States with the FAA. In a review of the design on AVweb, writer Paul Bertorelli indicated that the aircraft suffers from a low useful load of , due to the choice of the old-technology Continental O-200D engine, which is at least heavier than other newer engines. By April 2019, 12 production aircraft had been delivered to customers, which included individuals and flight schools. By August 2021, 50 aircraft had been delivered and by November 2021, 66 had been delivered.

Variants

Ranger R7 Yellowstone

Base model powered by a Continental O-200-D four-stroke, air-cooled powerplant and fitted with a Dynon SkyView Touch glass cockpit avionics system. No longer in production.

Ranger R7 Glacier

Intermediate model powered by a Continental O-200-D four-stroke, air-cooled powerplant and fitted with a 10" Dynon SkyView HDX glass cockpit avionics system, additional exterior options are also available. This variant is now the base model aircraft available.

Ranger R7 Redwood

Premium model powered by a Continental O-200-D four-stroke, air-cooled powerplant and fitted with dual 10" Dynon SkyView HDX glass cockpit avionics system, additional exterior options are also available.

Ranger R7 Cascade

IFR Capable model powered by a Continental O-200-D four-stroke, air-cooled powerplant and fitted with dual 10" Dynon SkyView HDX glass cockpit avionics system as well a

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GTN 650Xi (GPS/MFD/COM/NAV), additional exterior options are also available.

Specifications (R7)

References

External links

*{{Official website, http://www.vashonaircraft.com/
Video review on AVweb
Ranger R7 2010s United States sport aircraft 2010s United States civil utility aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft High-wing aircraft