The Maupin Windrose is an American

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 co ...

, single-seat

glider Glider may refer to: Aircraft and transport Aircraft * Glider (aircraft), heavier-than-air aircraft primarily intended for unpowered flight ** Glider (sailplane), a rigid-winged glider aircraft with an undercarriage, used in the sport of glidin ...

and

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 ...

that was designed by Jim Maupin for the Sailplane Homebuilders Association Design Contest.Said, Bob: ''1983 Sailplane Directory,

Soaring Magazine ''SOARING'' is a magazine published monthly as a membership benefit of the Soaring Society of America. It was first published in 1937. The headquarters is in Hobbs, New Mexico. The magazine's article topics include safety issues and accounts of in ...

'', page 68,

Soaring Society of America The Soaring Society of America (SSA) was founded at the instigation of Warren E. Eaton to promote the sport of soaring in the USA and internationally. The first meeting was held in New York City in the McGraw–Hill Building on February 20, 193 ...

November 1983. USPS 499-920

Design and development

Maupin designed the Windrose as an easy-to-construct, safe, self-launching, low-cost and aesthetically pleasing aircraft project that could be flown as a pure glider or a powered glider. The design has many innovative features and is of mixed construction using wood, foam and

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 ...

. The wing is carved from solid foam and covered in fiberglass. There is no

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and instead the wing employs bands of unidirectional

roving A roving is a long and narrow bundle of fiber. Rovings are produced during the process of making spun yarn from wool fleece, raw cotton, or other fibres. Their main use is as fibre prepared for spinning, but they may also be used for specialised ...

epoxied under the outer skin and joined by vertical dowels to take the compression loads from the underlying foam. The wing is of a span or, optionally, a span, and uses an

Irv Culver Irven Harold Culver (May 11, 1911 – August 13, 1999) was an American aeronautical engineer. Most notable of all his accomplishments, Culver is credited for solving a fatal flaw in the Lockheed P-38, related to high-speed compressibility pr ...

custom airfoil. The ailerons are controlled from their inboard ends and there are no control runs inside the wings, which are solid. The

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 aircraf ...

is built around a hollow plywood box structure that supports the wing, landing gear, cockpit and the optional

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engine. The cockpit shell is made from fiberglass. A single triangular

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for glidepath control is mounted in the fuselage roof, above the wing center section. Both 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, s ...

and the horizontal stabilizer are all-flying surfaces.

Operational history

At least 14 aircraft were completed in the USA. As of July 2011 five remain on 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 ...

registry, including four gliders and one motorglider, which is owned by the designer. All are registered in the '' Experimental - Amateur-built'' category.

Variants

;Windrose glider :Unpowered version with a empty weight and a gross weight, first flown in June 1983. ;Windrose motor glider :Powered version with a empty weight and a gross weight, first flown in 1984. Take-off distance at sea level on a standard day is and the initial rate of climb is 500 fpm (2.5 m/s).

Specifications (Windrose glider)

References

External links