The Aerodyne Systems Vector is a family of American

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 conventional three-axis control aircraft with aile ...

that was designed by Berndt Petterson, Mike McCarron and Paul Yarnell and produced by Aerodyne Systems, introduced in 1982. The aircraft was supplied as a kit for amateur construction.Cliche, Andre: ''Ultralight Aircraft Shopper's Guide'' 8th Edition, page E-42. Cybair Limited Publishing, 2001.

Design and development

The Vector owes many of its design concepts to the earlier Hill Humbug and was later to inspire and influence the

Ultralight Flight Mirage The Ultralight Flight Mirage is an American ultralight aircraft that was designed by Frank Riley and produced by Ultralight Flight Inc. The aircraft was supplied as a kit for amateur construction.Cliche, Andre: ''Ultralight Aircraft Shopper's ...

. The Vector was designed to comply with the US FAR 103 Ultralight Vehicles rules, including the category's maximum empty weight of . The aircraft has a standard empty weight of . It features a cable-braced

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 conf ...

, V-tail, a single-seat, open cockpit,

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 single 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 no ...

. The aircraft is made from bolted-together

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 h ...

tubing, with its flying surfaces covered in

Dacron Polyethylene terephthalate (or poly(ethylene terephthalate), PET, PETE, or the obsolete PETP or PET-P), is the most common thermoplastic polymer resin of the polyester family and is used in fibres for clothing, containers for liquids and food ...

sailcloth. Its 80% double-surface span wing is supported by cables running from an inverted "V"

kingpost A king post (or king-post or kingpost) is a central vertical post used in architectural or bridge designs, working in tension to support a beam below from a truss apex above (whereas a crown post, though visually similar, supports items above f ...

. The

landing gear Landing gear is the undercarriage of an aircraft or spacecraft that is used for takeoff or landing. For aircraft it is generally needed for both. It was also formerly called ''alighting gear'' by some manufacturers, such as the Glenn L. Marti ...

's nose wheel is not steerable and a small tail caster is provided. The pilot is accommodated on an open seat, without a windshield. The engine is mounted at the wing's leading edge and powers the

trailing edge The trailing edge of an aerodynamic surface such as a wing is its rear edge, where the airflow separated by the leading edge meets.Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Terms, third edition'', page 521. Aviation Supplies & Academics, 199 ...

-mounted pusher propeller through an extension shaft. The Vector series was very popular in its day and a great number were produced.

Variants

;Vector 600 :Initial model, with a two-axis control system, powered by two

Chrysler Stellantis North America (officially FCA US and formerly Chrysler ()) is one of the " Big Three" automobile manufacturers in the United States, headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan. It is the American subsidiary of the multinational automot ...

engines. ;Vector 610 :Improved model, with a structurally strengthened

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 aero ...

, enlarged spoilers, elliptical

wing tip A wing tip (or wingtip) is the part of the wing that is most distant from the fuselage of a fixed-wing aircraft. Because the wing tip shape influences the size and drag of the wingtip vortices, tip design has produced a diversity of shap ...

extensions and powered by a single Zenoah G-25B single cylinder,

two-stroke A two-stroke (or two-stroke cycle) engine is a type of internal combustion engine that completes a power cycle with two strokes (up and down movements) of the piston during one power cycle, this power cycle being completed in one revolution of t ...

engine. ;Vector 627 :Powered by a single single cylinder, two-stroke Rotax 277 engine. ;Vector 627 SR :Powered by a single single cylinder, two-stroke Rotax 377 engine.

Specifications (Vector 610)

References

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External links

Photo of Vector 610
1980s United States ultralight aircraft Homebuilt aircraft Single-engined pusher aircraft Parasol-wing aircraft Vector 600 V-tail aircraft