LGT Aeronautical Stratos ![]()
The Stratos is an Australian type that first flew in April 1985. The aeroplane was designed to confirm Mr Ligeti's conviction of the aerodynamic and structural advantages inherent in such a hybrid type, which combines the efficiency of the canard configuration, the combined large wing area and small overall span of the tandem-wing configuration, and the strength of the braced biplane configuration. The compact dimensions of the Stratos make it possible for the fully assembled machine to be towed on a trailer. The core of the Stratos is the short but streamlined fuselage, which is an all-composite structure built up of Kevlar and glassfibre skins over shaped rigid foam. The fuselage supports the bicycle main units of the fixed landing gear, which are supplemented by outrigger stabilizers under the tips of the canard foreplanes, as well as the powerplant and flying surfaces. The powerplant comprises a small piston engine driving a pusher propeller enclosed, for improved efficiency, in a circular duct of 25.5-in (0.65-m) internal diameter. The flying surfaces are of the same basic construction as the fuselage, with carbonfibre spars, and comprise straight rear-mounted wings ending in vertical surfaces that stretch down to form the wings' physical and aerodynamic link with the canard foreplanes, which run back from the nose just forward of the cockpit.
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