MODE S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE BIG CHANGEOVER + WAC 2011 Special report + ELEPHANTS! Autogyro in Africa + EU IFR New plans explained +

F R E S H A I R F O R F L Y I N G

OCTOBER 2011 ISSUE 72 £3.40

TECH NEWS FEST ELECTRIC AIRCRAFT BLITZ MPG TARGETS + DIESEL Cessna going for Jet-A + FLIGHT DESIGN C4 unleaded + ROTARY Electric heli! +

13 AIRCRAFT TOCHANGE THE WORLD

13 AIRCRAFT TO+ S P E C I A L I N N O V A T I O N I S S U E +

CHANGE THE WORLDTake a peek into the future and see the aircraft that will revolutionise fl ying

INCLUDING Solar Impulse, Pipistrel, Lisa, e-Go, Virgin Galactic, and many more...

>> ELECTRIC aviation is big news at present, and will only get bigger. As you will have read elsewhere in this issue, last month saw $1.35m, the biggest prize in civil aviation, awarded by the NASA-Google CAFÉ Green Flight Challenge to the electric Pipistrel Taurus G4, which showed fuel efficiency per passenger some 400% better than that of the new Boeing 787 Dreamliner (see p4).

Almost all the new electric aircraft cropping up are entirely new designs, created from scratch to take full benefit of new materials and of featherweight construction. Which, it has to be said, not every pilot is a fan of – many prefer the sturdy feel of an all-metal design, and schools love them too, as they are rugged and cope with abuse from students.

Colorado-based Beyond Aviation have come at it from the other end, and are developing an electric engine and power system that will fit into the estimated 40,000+ Cessna 172s flying worldwide, and ultimately

countless other similar-sized aircraft too.

The Beyond 172 currently uses 320kg-worth of batteries and electric motor – about the same as a standard Lycoming-engined 172 with a full fuel load – with the promise that as battery tech advances (which it is, quite rapidly) the available payload/range will increase as a result. Beyond targets a two-hour duration at launch.

So far it has completed successful taxi tests and it should fly in 2012, aiming initially for a Supplementary Type Certificate for a two-seater, then afterwards for a full four-seater.

The proposition to flight training schools, who conduct most flights with two aboard and of only an hour or so, is really strong: electric motors are more reliable and easier to maintain than gasoline engines, and of course the running costs are a tiny fraction – just a few dollars or pounds per hour.

They are also quieter, which for schools with aircraft constantly in the air is a strong sales point in the ongoing war to placate neighbours.

Adding to the ambitious project’s credibility, the Beyond 172 has the backing of Cessna itself – not a company known to jump into bed with any suitor. www.beyond-aviation.com

>> THE Cessna 162 Skycatcher might be the most improbable game changer on the list… a traditional metal high-wing that looks remarkably like countless other small Cessnas.

It’s not got amazing range or a particularly high payload, it’s not particularly fast or economical, and it’s got a Lycoming engine that burns gasoline. So why the fuss? The 162 changes the game simply because it exists: a Light Sport Aircraft, from Cessna.

Industry heavyweight Cessna is something of a mirror for aviation, and – a bit like the company – most pilots are fairly conservative, avoiding risks or ventures into uncharted territory; it’s better for your health to stay on the flightplan, and out of the unknown.

And that meant a lot of existing pilots weren’t taking the new Light Sport Aircraft class seriously, seeing it filled with from firms they’d never heard of, and were unlikely to learn more about.

The LSA regs might have ushered in the largest number of innovative new designs for a generation, intended to reduce costs and lower the barrier to entry for new pilots,

but the majority of existing pilots will simply stick with what they know and WHO they know.

So Cessna’s decision to jump into LSAs with a brand new design is a game changer because it gives the still-young class a much-needed air of credibility, and in doing so – ironically – opens up dozens of new companies making rivals to the 162 to an audience that might never had considered them before.

Cessna have quickly racked up over 1000 Skycatcher orders, and the fact it is an entirely traditional design is all the better. The message is reassuring: there’s no reason not to like it, or LSAs.

The primary market was intended to be flight training schools looking to replace old 150/152s, but lots of private buyers are snapping them up.www.cessna.com

beyond aviation’s electric 172

cessna 162 skycatcher

Giving new low-cost life to old

Giving cred where it’s needed

R E V I TA L I S I N G A L E G E N D

C L A S S L E A D E Rcoverstory

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>> THE Holy Grail of all aircraft companies, and anyone in aviation for that matter, is – surely – to get more pilots flying, and create a buzz about flying. On that basis, the US ICON A5 is doing us all a huge favour.

When was the last time an upstart company with no previous manufacturing history caused such a buzz in aviation? One that looks set to have the best part of 1000 orders on its books before even certifying its first aircraft –

and during a worldwide economic car crash at that? 1000!

The A5 is another example of how wholesale rule changes

open the door to new ideas and new ways of thinking, and is the standout example of what the new LSA regulations have promoted: new ideas in aviation.

It could not have come from one of the major incumbents, and nor could its approach to the market: glitz, glamour, and sell the sizzle. It lands on tarmac! It lands on water! It goes on a trailer! Its wings fold back in moments! It’s unbelievably cool! Flying is easy, and within reach.

Back it up with unimpeachable technical staff (formerly at Scaled Composites), and mouth-watering styling inside and out, and it’s no surprise that a third of its orders have come from buyers who are not even pilots yet. Unprecedented. For many, its $139,000 price tag is less than the car they might have bought instead.

For the rest, it promises a return to the kind of flying that got them into aviation in the first place: fun!www.iconaircraft.com

icon a5The aircraft that non-pilots will ask you about

T H E D O O R T O N E W P I L O T S

It could not have come from one of the major incumbents of aircraft manufacture

The 162 has shot to the

top of the LSA sales charts in

the US

£200 to top her up? How about

a fiver...

Out with the old Lycoming, in with the new electric motor

Every aspect of the ICON is about ease of

ownership and ease of use

A lot of existing pilots weren’t taking the new Light Sport Aircraft class seriously

Electric motors are more reliable and easier to maintain than gasoline engines

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