The Raceair Skylite 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 by Ed Fisher and made available in the form of plans for amateur construction, by

Raceair Designs Raceair Designs LLC is an American aircraft manufacturer based in Gilbert, South Carolina, founded by designer Ed Fisher. The company was formerly located in Mayville, New York and Warren, Ohio. The company specializes in the design and manufa ...

.Cliche, Andre: ''Ultralight Aircraft Shopper's Guide'' 8th Edition, page E-35. Cybair Limited Publishing, 2001. The Skylite design was started in 1988 and the completed aircraft was first shown at Oshkosh in 1991. It was also sold by

Wings of Freedom Wings Of Freedom, Inc. was an American aircraft manufacturer based in Hubbard, Ohio. The company was previously located in Middlefield, Ohio. The company specialized in the design and manufacture of ultralight aircraft in the form of plans and ...

, but by late 2019 the company website had been taken down and it is likely that production had ended.

Design and development

The aircraft 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 ...

rules, including the category's maximum empty weight of . The aircraft has a standard empty weight of . It features a

strut-braced 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 ...

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,

conventional landing gear Conventional landing gear, or tailwheel-type landing gear, is an aircraft undercarriage consisting of two main wheels forward of the center of gravity and a small wheel or skid to support the tail.Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Term ...

and a single engine in tractor configuration. The design is intended to resemble the high-wing

air racers The atmosphere of Earth is the layer of gases, known collectively as air, retained by Earth's gravity that surrounds the planet and forms its planetary atmosphere. The atmosphere of Earth protects life on Earth by creating pressure allowing for ...

of the 1930s. The Skylite is constructed with a welded

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

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 ...

, with the wings built from

rivet A rivet is a permanent mechanical fastener. Before being installed, a rivet consists of a smooth cylindrical shaft with a head on one end. The end opposite to the head is called the ''tail''. On installation, the rivet is placed in a punched ...

ed and gussetted

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. The

wing rib In an aircraft, ribs are forming elements of the structure of a wing, especially in traditional construction. By analogy with the anatomical definition of "rib", the ribs attach to the main spar, and by being repeated at frequent intervals, form ...

s are made from angled aluminum and have an spacing between them. All surfaces are covered in 1.6 oz aircraft fabric finished with

latex Latex is an emulsion (stable dispersion) of polymer microparticles in water. Latexes are found in nature, but synthetic latexes are common as well. In nature, latex is found as a milky fluid found in 10% of all flowering plants (angiosperms ...

. Its span wing is supported by "V" lift struts and

jury struts 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 ...

and features full-span

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. The

vertical stabilizer A vertical stabilizer or tail fin is the static part of the vertical tail of an aircraft. The term is commonly applied to the assembly of both this fixed surface and one or more movable rudders hinged to it. Their role is to provide control, sta ...

is highly swept back. The pilot is accommodated in a semi-enclosed cockpit with a windshield. The specified engine was the

Rotax 277 The Rotax 277 is a , single-cylinder, two-stroke aircraft engine, that was 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. Development The ...

of , but being plans-built other powerplants were also used. Due to its plans-built construction and complex design, only a small number of aircraft were completed before the plans were initially taken off the market. Today plans and kits are again available from

Wings Of Freedom Wings Of Freedom, Inc. was an American aircraft manufacturer based in Hubbard, Ohio. The company was previously located in Middlefield, Ohio. The company specialized in the design and manufacture of ultralight aircraft in the form of plans and ...

of Hubbard, Ohio as well as the newly resurrected

. Construction time is estimated as 750 hours.

Operational history

The design won ''Grand Champion Ultralight'' at AirVenture in 1991.Purdy, Don: ''AeroCrafter - Homebuilt Aircraft Sourcebook, Fifth Edition'', page 231. BAI Communications, 15 July 1998. By 1998 the company reported that 300 kits and plans had been sold and 26 aircraft were completed and flying.

Specifications (Skylite)

References

External links

Official web site (Cloudbase Aviation)Photo of a SkyliteAll-aspect photos of a Skylite
{{Wings of Freedom aircraft 1990s United States ultralight aircraft Homebuilt aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft Raceair Designs aircraft Wings of Freedom aircraft