The Merkel Mark II is an American
homebuilt
Homebuilt machines are machines built outside of specialised workshops or factories. This can include different things such as kit cars or homebuilt computers, but normally it pertains to homebuilt aircraft, also known as amateur-built aircraft or ...
aerobatic
Aerobatics is the practice of flying maneuvers involving aircraft attitudes that are not used in conventional passenger-carrying flights. The term is a portmanteau of "aerial" and "acrobatics". Aerobatics are performed in aeroplanes and glid ...
biplane
A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two main wings stacked one above the other. The first powered, controlled aeroplane to fly, the Wright Flyer, used a biplane wing arrangement, as did many aircraft in the early years of aviation. While ...
that was designed by Edwin Merkel and produced by the
Merkel Airplane Company of
Wichita, Kansas
Wichita ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Sedgwick County, Kansas, Sedgwick County. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 397,532. The Wichita metro area had ...
in the form of plans for amateur construction.
[Plane and Pilot: ''1978 Aircraft Directory'', page 147. Werner & Werner Corp, Santa Monica CA, 1977. ]
Designer Merkel died on 12 March 2012 and plans are no longer available.
Design and development
The Mark II features a two-seats-in-
tandem open cockpit with an optional
bubble canopy, 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 ...
and a single engine in
tractor configuration. The Mark II was intended as a two-seat
trainer version as a companion to a planned single-seat competition version.
The aircraft is made from welded steel tubing with the
airframe
The mechanical structure of an aircraft is known as the airframe. This structure is typically considered to include the fuselage, undercarriage, empennage and wings, and excludes the propulsion system.
Airframe design is a field of aerospa ...
covered in sheet
aluminum
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 has ...
. Its span wings employ a
NACA 23012 airfoil
An airfoil (American English) or aerofoil (British English) is the cross-sectional shape of an object whose motion through a gas is capable of generating significant lift, such as a wing, a sail, or the blades of propeller, rotor, or turbine.
...
and each has a single torsional
spar. The standard engine recommended was a
Franklin Engine Company powerplant.
The aircraft has an empty weight of and a gross weight of , giving a useful load of . With full fuel of the payload is .
Specifications (Mark II)
References
External links
Photo of a Merkel Mark IIColor photo of a Merkel Mark II
{{aerobatics
Mark II
Mark II or Mark 2 often refers to the second version of a product, frequently military hardware. "Mark", meaning "model" or "variant", can be abbreviated "Mk."
Mark II or Mark 2 may refer to:
Military and weaponry
* 16"/50 caliber Mark 2 gun ...
1960s United States sport aircraft
Single-engined tractor aircraft
Biplanes
Homebuilt aircraft
Aerobatic aircraft