The Mitchell Wing A-10 and T-10 are a family of American cantilever,

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 ...

, high-wing,

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 n ...

, one and two seat

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 Aircraft flight control system, conventional three-a ...

designed for amateur construction or supplied as completed aircraft. The aircraft were designed by Don Mitchell and were produced by a number of companies, the last being AmeriPlanes of

Truro, Iowa Truro is a city in southeast Madison County, Iowa, United States. The population was 509 at the time of the 2020 census. Truro is part of the Des Moines–West Des Moines Metropolitan Statistical Area. History Truro was laid out and platte ...

.Cliche, Andre: ''Ultralight Aircraft Shopper's Guide'' 8th Edition, pages B-38 & B-92. Cybair Limited Publishing, 2001. Purdy, Don: ''AeroCrafter - Homebuilt Aircraft Sourcebook'', page 308. BAI Communications.

Development

The A-10 is a 1982 development of the

Mitchell Wing B-10 The Mitchell Wing B-10 is an American high-wing, open cockpit, single-seat, tailless, ultralight aircraft and motor glider designed by Don Mitchell and based on his Mitchell Wing hang-glider. It has been produced by a variety of companies in ...

ultralight, itself developed from the Mitchell Wing

hang glider Hang gliding is an air sport or recreational activity in which a pilot flies a light, non-motorised foot-launched heavier-than-air aircraft called a hang glider. Most modern hang gliders are made of an aluminium alloy or composite frame covered ...

of 1977. Their designer Don Mitchell had worked on the Northrop YB-49 bomber project. In place of the B-10's composite wing, the A-10 features a metal wing, attached in cantilever fashion to an open cockpit that can be equipped with a streamlined pod. The low-drag design results in a 16:1 glide ratio for the A-10. The aircraft can be used as a

motor glider A motor glider is a fixed-wing aircraft that can be flown with or without engine power. The FAI Gliding Commission Sporting Code definition is: a fixed-wing aerodyne equipped with a means of propulsion (MoP), capable of sustained soaring flight ...

or as a cross country touring aircraft. The wing is constructed from sheet

aluminium 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 ha ...

, with a main

spar SPAR, originally DESPAR, styled as DE SPAR, is a Dutch multinational that provides branding, supplies and support services for independently owned and operated food retail stores. It was founded in the Netherlands in 1932, by Adriaan van Well, ...

in the form of a D-cell. The ribs are made from aluminium sheet and the wing is covered in the same material. The fuselage is built from aluminium tubing, riveted together. A cockpit streamlined pod was optional. The design has folding wings and was intended for trailering from the onset. The standard engine for the A-10 is 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 Ultralight aviation (called microlight aviation in some countries) is the flying of lightwe ...

, but the

Rotax 447 The Rotax 447 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. Design and development ...

and the Zenoah G-25 have also been installed. Construction time of the kit was rated as 80–120 hours. The A-10 was produced by a number of companies, including Mitchell Aircraft Corporation and Mitchell Wing, Inc. of

Porterville, California Porterville is a city in the San Joaquin Valley, in Tulare County, California, United States. It is part of the Visalia-Porterville metropolitan statistical area. Since its incorporation in 1902, the city's population has grown as it annexed n ...

, MitchellWing Aircraft Company of

Kansas Kansas () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its Capital city, capital is Topeka, Kansas, Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita, Kansas, Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebras ...

Tulsa Mitchell Wing, Inc. Tulsa () is the second-largest city in the U.S. state, state of Oklahoma and List of United States cities by population, 47th-most populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. ...

Tulsa, Oklahoma Tulsa () is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 47th-most populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 census. It is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region wit ...

Higher Planes Higher may refer to: Music * The Higher, a 2002–2012 American pop rock band Albums * ''Higher'' (Ala Boratyn album) or the title song, 2007 * ''Higher'' (Ezio album) or the title song, 2000 * ''Higher'' (Harem Scarem album) or the title song ...

Dover, Kansas Dover is an unincorporated community in Shawnee County, Kansas, United States. It is located southwest of Topeka. History Settlers came in the year 1856. The Sage and Bassett families in Dover came from Somersetshire, Bristol. Dover was made ...

and lastly AmeriPlanes of

. AmeriPlanes acquired the design on 15 April 1998 when Larry Smith took possession of the MitchellWing Aircraft Company. Ameriplanes was a one-person company and provided both kits and completed aircraft, but the company went out of business in the mid-2000s and the A-10 is no longer in production. The A-10 was developed into a two-seat trainer, with

side-by-side seating 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 ...

, designated the T-10. The T-10 incorporated three feet more wingspan and has a reduced glide ratio of 14:1.

Variants

;A-10 :Single seat design powered by a

or Zenoah G-25. ;A-10B ''Plain Jane'' :''Basic'', stripped down single seat design powered by a Zenoah G-25. From the factory the model did not include the cockpit streamlining pod or other extras and was intended to comply with the US FAR 103 Ultralight Vehicles regulations, with an empty weight of ;A-10D :''Deluxe'' model improved single seat design powered by a Zenoah G-25. ;T-10 :Two seat side-by-side design powered by a

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 Rot ...

. ;T-10D :''Deluxe'' model two seat side-by-side design powered by a

Zenoah G-50 The Zenoah G-50 is a twin-cylinder, horizontally opposed, two stroke, carburetted aircraft engine, designed for use on ultralight aircraft.Cliche, Andre: ''Ultralight Aircraft Shopper's Guide'' 8th Edition, page G-8 Cybair Limited Publishing, 20 ...

Aircraft on display

EAA AirVenture Museum The EAA Aviation Museum, formerly the EAA AirVenture Museum (or Air Adventure Museum), is a museum dedicated to the preservation and display of historic and experimental aircraft as well as antiques, classics, and warbirds. The museum is lo ...

- A-10

Specifications (A-10)

References

External links

Archives of AmeriPlanes
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, ...