The Glasair I, originally built as the prototype Glasair TD

taildragger 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 ...

, is a high-performance

homebuilt 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 ...

built of

fiberglass Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass ( Commonwealth English) is a common type of fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened into a sheet called a chopped strand mat, or woven into glass clo ...

. Created by Tom Hamilton as a fast, two-seat kitplane, the Glasair TD was derived from the earlier

Tom Hamilton Glasair The SH-1 tandem Glasair was an original homebuilt aircraft design by Tom Hamilton, who would use the lessons learned from this to build the Glasair I, II and III series of homebuilt aircraft. Design The Glasair was an all composite, low-wing ta ...

and first flew in 1979. Hamilton formed

Stoddard-Hamilton Aircraft Stoddard-Hamilton Aircraft, based in Arlington, Washington, was a designer and supplier of high-performance homebuilt aircraft kits, offering parts and plans to homebuilders. The company's popular ''Glasair'' aircraft series are low wing, two- ...

that year to produce and market the kit, which was the first pre-molded

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 ...

aircraft available to builders. It was introduced to the public at the 1980 EAA Convention in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, winning Hamilton the 1985 EAA August Raspet Award for "significant advancements in the field of

light aircraft A light aircraft is an aircraft that has a maximum gross takeoff weight of or less.Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Terms, third edition'', page 308. Aviation Supplies & Academics, 1997. Light aircraft are used as utility aircraft co ...

design".

Specifications (Glasair 1 )

References

{{Glasair aircraft Homebuilt aircraft Glasair I Glasair I