The Oshkosh '95 show provided clues for those on the trail of a GA comeback.
Karen Walker/OSHKOSH
RECENT INDICATIONS that the US general-aviation (GA) industry is turning the corner out of recession have been reinforced by Oshkosh '95, the annual convention and fly-in of the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) at its Wisconsin headquarters. This year's show, on 27 July-3 August, boasted a new outdoor display area and two additional exhibit hangars, more than doubling the exhibition space.
The show's major event was the formal establishment of a partnership to revitalise the GA industry. Executive-council members representing NASA, the US Federal Aviation Administration, industry and universities signed an agreement at Oshkosh confirming their commitment to the Advanced General Aviation Transport Experiments (AGATE) consortium (Flight International, 21-27 June).
The purpose of AGATE is to encourage growth of the market for inter-city transportation by small aircraft. AGATE members will share resources and risks in a NASA-led programme which aims to develop safer, cheaper, and easier-to-fly aircraft as well as to improve pilot training and GA operations.
Among those signing the agreement were NASA Administrator Dan Goldin, Ed Stimpson of the General Aircraft Manufacturers' Association (GAMA), Paul Fiducia of the Small Aircraft Manufacturers' Association (SAMA) and AGATE executive-council members representing Arnav Systems, Cessna Aircraft, Cirrus Design, Raytheon Aircraft and Teledyne Continental.
Dr Bruce Holmes, AGATE director and head of NASA's GA office at Langley Research Center Virginia, believes that the next five to ten years, will be the most exciting in the history of the GA industry and that the consortium, bringing together 61 companies and organisations, represents a blueprint for revitalisation. "It offers industry the ability to work together to undertake tasks of higher risk, with higher payoff, faster technology-transfer, control of proprietary and shared technologies, reduced costs, and more efficient use of research-and-development resources," says Holmes.
A non-interactive simulator representing an AGATE-style cockpit was featured on NASA's exhibit at Oshkosh. The cockpit concept-demonstrator, consisting of a computerised flat-panel display providing weather reports, runway and airspace conditions, and aircraft-systems data, is being used as a market-research tool. At Oshkosh, around 200 pilots were invited to a demonstration of the cockpit's capabilities on a simulated, automated, flight from Denver, Colorado, to Casper, Wyoming, before being led through a questionnaire.
In another much-anticipated event, the FAA issued an advisory circular, which it hopes will define more clearly when an aircraft can be designated and licensed as "amateur-built".
The circular, AC-120-XX Commercial assistance during construction of amateur-built aircraft, has been constructed with the assistance of the EAA and SAMA. Under the FAA regulations, which govern the licensing of home-builts and kitplanes, the owner must build the majority of the aircraft, a requirement generally known as the 51% rule. Recently, the FAA has become concerned about the number of people who have flaunted the rule by hiring assistance when putting together a kit.
The FAA circular states that an amateur builder may seek commercial instructional assistance during the assembly of specific parts of his aircraft and may use builder centres and rent hangar space, with tools, but the amateur must build the majority of his aircraft himself.
FAA manager of production and airworthiness certification Michael Gallagher says that the latest advisory is not a new rule. "What we're trying to do is explain what the [existing] rule means, so that we can keep the amateur programme viable," he says.
A handful of new aircraft designs, for both factory-produced and amateur-built markets, had their debuts at Oshkosh '95.
A mock-up of Cirrus Design's SR20 all-composite production light aircraft was unveiled at the 1994 show. The flying prototype had its debut at the 1995 Oshkosh. More than 100h has been logged on the four-seat, fixed-gear, SR20, and a second prototype is expected to join the flight test programme in October. Duluth, Minnesota-based Cirrus is aiming for certification by early 1997.
Cirrus president Alan Klapmeier says that the first prototype is flying well. "We've been looking at the handling characteristics and are just getting into performance testing. We are very happy with the way it's going," he says. The $130,000, low-wing, single-engine SR20 has an Arnav Systems flat-panel-display cockpit and a Ballistic Recovery System aircraft parachute.
The New Meyers Aircraft SP20 is a revamp of the 1940s-vintage Meyers 145 with a stretched fuselage, widened cabin, retractable tail-wheel and 150kW (295hp) Textron Lycoming engine. It has a 5h endurance and a 160kt (295km/h) cruise. Meyers' director of sales, Phillip Riddle, says that the $150,000 production-certificated aircraft is targeted at "...the homebuilder who doesn't want to wait up to six years" to complete his aircraft. Meyers intends to start taking orders during the fourth quarter of this year and to begin deliveries in early 1996.
The Highlander kitplane is based on the British-designed ARV Super2 production aircraft, which is now factory-built in Sweden as the Opus 280. The all-metal, two-seat, aircraft will have a 130kt maximum cruise and basic kit price of $13,900. Tooling to produce the kits is in place at Highlander Aircraft's St Paul, Minnesota, headquarters, and tail kits will be available for delivery in August.
Bede Aircraft unveiled a proof-of-concept machine, the BD-12. Designer Jim Bede says that the two-seat kitplane will be available by early 1996 for around $21,000, and a four-seat BD-14 is planned. The kit's small number of parts - just 232 - and the use of Bede-dealer "builder institutes", complete with tools and instructors, will make it possible for the BD-12 to be constructed in two weeks, he says.
Aversano Air of Fort Lauderdale, Florida unveiled a mock-up of its proposed Spectre production aircraft. The company hopes to sell ten of these $1 million, 350kt-cruise, single engine aircraft for half price to pay for certification.
Source: Flight International
