The Azalea Saberwing, named for the
species of hummingbird, is an American
amateur-built aircraft
Homebuilt aircraft, also known as amateur-built aircraft or kit planes, are constructed by persons for whom this is not a professional activity. These aircraft may be constructed from "scratch", from plans, or from assembly kits.Armstrong, Kenn ...
, designed and produced by
Azalea Aviation of
Adel, Georgia
The city of Adel is the county seat of Cook County, Georgia, United States, located fifty-two miles (84 km) southeast of Albany. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 5,571.
History
The original name of the city was Puddlev ...
, introduced at
Sun 'n Fun in 2015. The aircraft is supplied as a kit for amateur construction.
[Tacke, Willi; Marino Boric; et al: ''World Directory of Light Aviation 2015-16'', page 101. Flying Pages Europe SARL, 2015. ]
Design and development
The Saberwing features a cantilever
low-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 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 cockpit under a
bubble canopy
A bubble canopy is an aircraft canopy constructed without bracing, for the purpose of providing a wider unobstructed field of view to the pilot, often providing 360° all-round visibility.
The designs of bubble canopies can drastically vary; s ...
, fixed
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 ...
or optionally
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
wheel pants
An aircraft fairing is a structure whose primary function is to produce a smooth outline and reduce drag.Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Terms, Third Edition'', page 206. Aviation Supplies & Academics Inc, Newcastle Washington, 1997. ...
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 a
composite
Composite or compositing may refer to:
Materials
* Composite material, a material that is made from several different substances
** Metal matrix composite, composed of metal and other parts
** Cermet, a composite of ceramic and metallic materials
...
-foam sandwich with the
wing spar
In a fixed-wing aircraft, the spar is often the main structural member of the wing, running spanwise at right angles (or thereabouts depending on wing sweep) to the fuselage. The spar carries flight loads and the weight of the wings while on t ...
s and
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 made from a wood-composite sandwich. The design has been optimized for a low parts-count to simplify construction. Its span wing, has an area of and mounts
flaps. The cabin is in width. The standard engine used is the in-house developed Spyder
Corvair automotive conversion four-stroke powerplant.
The manufacturer estimates that building the aircraft from the supplied kit requires 500-1,000 hours of labor at a total completion cost of
US$
The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...
40,000-50,000.
Operational history
Reviewers Roy Beisswenger and Marino Boric described the design in a 2015 review as "sleek" and "elegant".
By September 2020, four examples had been
registered in the United States with the
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 ...
.
Specifications (Saberwing)
See also
*
List of aerobatic aircraft
An aerobatic aircraft is an aerodyne (a heavier-than-air aircraft) used in aerobatics, both for flight exhibitions and aerobatic competitions.
Most fall into one of two categories, aircraft used for training and by flight demonstration teams, wh ...
References
External links
*{{Official website, http://www.azaleaaviation.com/
Photo of the prototype Saberwing
Saberwing
2010s United States sport aircraft
Single-engined tractor aircraft
Low-wing aircraft
Homebuilt aircraft