The Fisher FP-303 is a Canadian single-seat, low wing,

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 ...

, single engined light

kit 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 for construction by amateur builders. Fisher Flying Products was originally based in

Edgeley, North Dakota Edgeley is a city in LaMoure County, North Dakota, United States. The population was 585 at the 2020 census. History Edgeley was founded in 1886 by Richard Sykes, a landowner from England who named it after Edgeley, Cheshire, where he was born. ...

USA The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

but the company is now located in

Woodbridge, Ontario Woodbridge is a very large suburban community in Vaughan, Ontario, Canada, along the city's border with Toronto. It occupies the city's entire southwest quadrant, west of Ontario Highway 400, Highway 400, east of Ontario Highway 50, Highway 50, n ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

.Vandermeullen, Richard: ''2011 Kit Aircraft Buyer's Guide'', Kitplanes, Volume 28, Number 12, December 2011, page 53. Belvoir Publications. ISSN 0891-1851Downey, Julia: ''Kit Aircraft Directory 2005'', Kitplanes, Volume 21, Number 12, December 2004, page 57. Belvoir Publications. ISSN 0891-1851Purdy, Don: ''AeroCrafter - Homebuilt Aircraft Sourcebook'', page 161. BAI Communications. Kitplanes Staff: ''1999 Kit Aircraft Directory'', Kitplanes, Volume 15, Number 12, December 1998, page 47. Primedia Publications. IPM 0462012Cliche, Andre: ''Ultralight Aircraft Shopper's Guide'' 8th Edition, page B-22 Cybair Limited Publishing, 2001.

Development

The FP-303 was designed by Fisher Aircraft in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

in 1982 and was intended to meet the requirements of the US FAR 103 ''Ultralight Vehicles'' category, including that category's maximum empty weight. The design goal was to provide ultralight pilots with an aircraft that was as portable as possible. To this end the aircraft's wings fold along the fuselage to rest on the horizontal stabilizer allowing trailering or storage in a small hangar or with other aircraft. The aircraft can be field assembled from its travelling state in ten minutes. The FP-303 has a standard empty weight of when equipped with a two-stroke

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 ...

engine. The construction of the FP-303 is similar to the

Fisher FP-202 Koala The Fisher FP-202 Koala is a Canadian single-seat high wing, conventional landing gear, single engined light kit aircraft designed for construction by amateur builders. The aircraft was inspired by the design of the Piper J-3 Cub and strongly ...

. The aircraft's structure is entirely made from wood, with the wooden

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 ...

built from wood strips arranged in a

geodesic In geometry, a geodesic () is a curve representing in some sense the shortest path ( arc) between two points in a surface, or more generally in a Riemannian manifold. The term also has meaning in any differentiable manifold with a connection. ...

form, resulting in a very strong and light aircraft with redundant load paths. Both the wings and fuselage are covered with doped

aircraft fabric Aircraft fabric covering is a term used for both the material used and the process of covering aircraft open structures. It is also used for reinforcing closed plywood structures. The de Havilland Mosquito is an example of this technique, as are ...

. The wings are

strut A strut is a structural component commonly found in engineering, aeronautics, architecture and anatomy. Struts generally work by resisting longitudinal compression, but they may also serve in tension. Human anatomy Part of the functionality o ...

-braced underneath to the landing gear and utilize bottom

jury strut 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 c ...

s. The wing is positioned aft enough that the pilot has adequate downward visibility. Flaps and brakes are optional. The company claims it takes an amateur builder between 300–500 hours to build the FP-303.

Specifications (FP-303)

References

External links

Official websitePhoto of FP-303
{{Uncertified aircraft developed in Canada 1980s Canadian ultralight aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1982 Low-wing aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft

Development

Specifications (FP-303)

See also

References

External links