Spectrum Aircraft was a Canadian

ultralight aircraft Ultralight aviation (called microlight aviation in some countries) is the flying of lightweight, 1- or 2-seat fixed-wing aircraft. Some countries differentiate between weight-shift control and Aircraft flight control system, conventional three-a ...

manufacturer that commenced operations in 1983 and went out of business in 1992. The company was known for its Beaver ultralight design, which remains in production by successor companies in the 21st century.Cliche, Andre: ''Ultralight Aircraft Shopper's Guide'' 8th Edition, pages B-9 B-70, B-103 & E-6. Cybair Limited Publishing, 2001. Downey, Julia: ''2008 Kit Aircraft Directory'', Kitplanes, Volume 24, Number 12, December 2007, page 37. Belvoir Publications. ISSN 0891-1851

History

Sprectrum's first product was the RX-28 Beaver, a single-seat, high wing ultralight aircraft powered by a

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 Ultralight aviation (called microlight aviation in some countries) is the flying of lightwe ...

single cylinder, two stroke powerplant. It was introduced in 1983 and gained quick popularity in Canada and the USA. The following year the RX-28 was joined in production by the RX-35, which used the

Rotax 377 The Rotax 377 is a , twin-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 Ro ...

engine. In 1986 the company started production of a two-seat version of the Beaver, designated the RX 550 and powered by a

Rotax 503 The Rotax 503 is a , inline 2-cylinder, two-stroke aircraft engine, 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. As of 2011 the Rot ...

engine. This model proved very popular as both a trainer and for private use and propelled the company into the forefront of ultralight aircraft production in North America. In 1991 the company introduced the RX-650 Beaver, intending to market it in the then-newly introduced Canadian Advanced Ultra-light Aeroplane (AULA) category that allows passenger carrying. The aircraft proved to have structural issues that caused

Transport Canada Transport Canada (french: Transports Canada) is the department within the Government of Canada responsible for developing regulations, policies and services of road, rail, marine and air transportation in Canada. It is part of the Transporta ...

to remove it from the AULA list. The company went out of business in 1992, before rectifying the deficiencies in the RX-650's design.

Successors

Beaver RX Enterprises

The RX-550 design was acquired by a new company, Beaver RX Enterprises, who returned the aircraft to production. The company did not last long and soon went out of business.

Aircraft Sales and Parts

In 1995 Aircraft Sales and Parts (ASAP) of

Vernon, British Columbia Vernon is a city in the Okanagan region of the Southern Interior of British Columbia, Canada. It is northeast of Vancouver. Named after Forbes George Vernon, a former MLA of British Columbia who helped establish the Coldstream Ranch in nearb ...

purchased the RX-550 tooling and redesigned the aircraft. The new version was designated the RX 550 Plus and remains in production in

kit Kit may refer to: Places *Kitt, Indiana, US, formerly Kit * Kit, Iran, a village in Mazandaran Province * Kit Hill, Cornwall, England People * Kit (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Kit (surname) Animals * Young animal ...

form. By the end of 2007 a total of 2000 RX 550s had been produced by all manufacturers. In 2000 ASAP introduced a single seat version of the Beaver based on the RX-28, designated the Beaver SS (Single Seat). Powered by a

Rotax 447 The Rotax 447 is a , inline 2-cylinder, two-stroke aircraft engine, 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. Design and development ...

engine and with a wing derived from the RX 550 Plus design, this aircraft remains in kit production.

Freedom Lite & Legend Lite

In 1996 a new company, ''Freedom Lite'', introduced a redesigned version of the Beaver RX 650. This improved RX 650 incorporated 186 changes over the previous version and was designated the SS-11 Skywatch and the company placed the aircraft in the Canadian AULA category. Freedom Lite soon went out of business and the design was acquired by ''Legend Lite'' of

New Hamburg, Ontario New Hamburg is a community of approximately 11,953 (2011 stats) in the township of Wilmot, Ontario, Canada. It is in the far western part of the Regional Municipality of Waterloo, near the regional border with Perth County. It is adjacent to t ...

. This new company also closed its doors in the early 2000s.

Aircraft

References

External links

{{Aircraft Sales and Parts Defunct aircraft manufacturers of Canada Defunct manufacturing companies of Canada Canadian companies established in 1983 Canadian companies disestablished in 1992 1983 establishments in British Columbia 1992 disestablishments in British Columbia Manufacturing companies disestablished in 1992 Manufacturing companies established in 1983