The Peterson J-4 Javelin is an
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
, single seat,
mid-wing 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 gliding
...
that was designed by
Max A. Peterson in the late 1960s and produced by the
Peterson Sailplane Corporation in small numbers. The glider was
type certified
A type certificate signifies the airworthiness of a particular category of aircraft, according to its manufacturing design (''type design''). It confirms that the aircraft of a new type intended for serial production, is in compliance with applica ...
and put into production in 1973.
[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 17. Soaring Society of America, November 1983. USPS 499-920
Design and development
Peterson designed the J-4 based on lessons he learned with his earlier
Peterson Medena design. The J-4 is a single seater, but can carry a child in the small seating area behind the pilot.
The J-4's
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 ...
is made from steel tube with the lower part covered in a
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 cl ...
shell and the upper part sheet
aluminium
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 ha ...
. The wing is built around a chem-milled tubular
spar
SPAR, originally DESPAR, styled as DE SPAR, is a Dutch multinational that provides branding, supplies and support services for independently owned and operated food retail stores. It was founded in the Netherlands in 1932, by Adriaan van Well, ...
and is assembled predominantly with
pop rivet
A rivet is a permanent mechanical fastener. Before being installed, a rivet consists of a smooth cylindrical shaft with a head on one end. The end opposite to the head is called the ''tail''. On installation, the rivet is placed in a punched o ...
s. The wing has no
aileron
An aileron (French for "little wing" or "fin") is a hinged flight control surface usually forming part of the trailing edge of each wing of a fixed-wing aircraft. Ailerons are used in pairs to control the aircraft in roll (or movement around ...
s and instead roll control is via upper surface
spoileron
In aeronautics, spoilerons (also known as spoiler ailerons or roll spoilers) are spoilers that can be used asymmetrically as flight control surfaces to provide roll control.
Operation
Spoilerons roll an aircraft by reducing the lift of the ...
s that eliminate virtually all
adverse yaw Adverse yaw is the natural and undesirable tendency for an aircraft to yaw in the opposite direction of a roll. It is caused by the difference in lift and drag of each wing. The effect can be greatly minimized with ailerons deliberately designed to ...
.
Spoilers are also provided for glide-path control. The landing gear is a monowheel.
First flown in 1969, the J-4 was
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 ...
type certified on 6 February 1973. A pilot production run of eight examples was completed, but production was not continued. Poly Industries of
Ontario, California
Ontario is a city in southwestern San Bernardino County in the U.S. state of California, east of downtown Los Angeles and west of downtown San Bernardino, the county seat. Located in the western part of the Inland Empire metropolitan area, i ...
produced aircraft under licensing agreement from Peterson Sailplane Corporation, who held the type certificate.
Operational history
In 1983, six of the original eight built were reportedly still flying and there were still six registered in April 2011.
Specifications (variant specified)
See also
References
External links
Photos and article about the J-4Photo of J-4Photo of J-4
{{Max A. Peterson aircraft
1960s United States sailplanes
Aircraft first flown in 1969