The Viking Aircraft Viking II is an American

powered parachute A powered parachute, often abbreviated PPC, and also called a motorized parachute or paraplane, is a type of aircraft that consists of a parafoil with a motor and wheels. The FAA defines a powered parachute as ''a powered aircraft a flexible or ...

designed and produced by Viking Aircraft Inc of

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; part of the ''Viking''-series. Now out of production, when it was available the aircraft was supplied complete and ready-to-fly.Bertrand, Noel; Rene Coulon; et al: ''World Directory of Leisure Aviation 2003-04'', page 88. Pagefast Ltd, Lancaster UK, 2003. The aircraft was introduced in 2000 and production ended when the company went out of business in 2005.

Design and development

The Viking II was designed for the

training Training is teaching, or developing in oneself or others, any skills and knowledge or fitness that relate to specific useful competencies. Training has specific goals of improving one's capability, capacity, productivity and performance. I ...

role, to comply with the U.S. FAR 103 Ultralight Vehicles rules as a two-seat trainer, but also meets the

Fédération Aéronautique Internationale The (; FAI; en, World Air Sports Federation) is the world governing body for air sports, and also stewards definitions regarding human spaceflight. It was founded on 14 October 1905, and is headquartered in Lausanne, Switzerland. It maintain ...

microlight 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 conventional three-axis control aircraft with aile ...

category requirements, including the category's maximum gross weight of . Some were also registered as ''Experimental'' aircraft in the U.S. and one as an ''Experimental - Amateur-built''. The Viking II features a

parachute A parachute is a device used to slow the motion of an object through an atmosphere by creating drag or, in a ram-air parachute, aerodynamic lift. A major application is to support people, for recreation or as a safety device for aviators, w ...

-style wing, two-seats-in- side-by-side configuration,

tricycle landing gear Tricycle gear is a type of aircraft undercarriage, or ''landing gear'', arranged in a tricycle fashion. The tricycle arrangement has a single nose wheel in the front, and two or more main wheels slightly aft of the center of gravity. Tricycle ...

and a twin-cylinder

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 in

pusher configuration In an aircraft with a pusher configuration (as opposed to a tractor configuration), the propeller(s) are mounted behind their respective engine(s). Since a pusher propeller is mounted behind the engine, the drive shaft is in compression in n ...

. The three-cylinder 2si 690-L70 liquid-cooled engine was a factory option. The aircraft carriage is built from metal tubing with a composite partial

cockpit fairing An aircraft fairing is a structure whose primary function is to produce a smooth outline and reduce drag.Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Terms, Third Edition'', page 206. Aviation Supplies & Academics Inc, Newcastle Washington, 1997. ...

. In flight steering is accomplished via handles that actuate the canopy brakes, creating roll and yaw. On the ground the aircraft has foot pedal-controlled nosewheel steering. The main landing gear incorporates spring rod suspension. The aircraft has an empty weight of and a gross weight of , giving a useful load of . With full fuel of the payload for crew and baggage is . The standard day, sea level, no wind, take off with a engine is and the landing roll is .

Operational history

In September 2015 five examples were registered in the United States with 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 ...

, although a total of six had been registered at one time.

Variants

The company also produced a single seat version of the Viking II design, which it referred to simply as the "Single-Place". This version mounts a single seat on a narrower cockpit frame, but is otherwise similar.

Specifications (Viking II)

References

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External links

Company website archives
on Archive.org Viking II 2000s United States sport aircraft 2000s United States ultralight aircraft Single-engined pusher aircraft Powered parachutes