Development of the Colibri MB-1 led to the MB.2 A wood and fabric construction, single seat, stressed for aerobatics: +11 and -6G. Suitable power is the VW1600.
Engine VW.
Span 19ft 8.25in.
Wing Area. 88.25 sq.ft.
Length 15ft 9in.
Max. wt. 7271bs.
Empty wt. 4741bs.
Cruise 86kt / 99 mph / 160 kmh
Climb Rate: 600 ft/min / 3 m/s
Stall: 32 kt / 37 mph / 60 kmh
VNE: 103 kt / 118 mph / 190 kmh
Empty Weight: 190 kg / 419 lbs
Max Brügger built a small all-wood single seat monoplane (HB-XVC-X) in 1965. This was essentially a Jodel D.9 fuselage mated to a Turbulent wing.
Development of the type led to the MB.2 Colibri.
El Bandido was designed by Clarence Brueggemann, of Norfolk, Neb. First flight was made during May 1970. Its cantilevered low wing uses the Clark- Y airfoil. Its modified 45-hp VW engine drives a two-bladed Thoyer metal prop.
Engine VW 1600cc, 45 hp.
Gross weight 630 lbs
Empty weight 380 lbs.
Fuel capacity 8 USgal.
Wingspan 18 ft.
Length 13ft
Vmax 120 mph.
Cruise speed 110 mph.
Climb rate 700 fpm.
Takeoff run 200ft
anding roll 300ft
Ceiling 11,000 ft.
The 1909 BRT biplane was built in France.
The Brown Aeronautical Company of Baltimore, Maryland built its second hydroplane design, aptly named Lord Baltimore II in 1911. This design is sometimes described as an amphibian, but this cannot be proved from the photograph. The design had a strong similarity to the Curtiss Hydroplanes, a not uncommon feat as these Curtiss designs were leading the field.
Carl Dryden Browne, formerly one of the “generals” in the famous Coxey Army of unemployed men who marched on Washington in 1894, built what he called an octoplane. It was equipped with a stationary elliptic plane, running lengthwise of the machine, measuring 4 feet at its widest part and tapering to a point at each end, designed to act as a stabilizer. The motive power was furnished by a 30-horsepower motor, operating a tractor propeller and two large four-bladed revolving planes on each side, similar to the paddles of a sidewheel steamer. The span of the machine was 26 feet and the length 28 feet. The elevating and vertical control surfaces were similar in shape and operation to those of a standard Curtiss.
Mark Brown created this aircraft in the early 1980s. First flying on 17 May 1983, the original Star-Lite weighed 195 lb and achieved 110 mph with 20 hp. The 1983 price was $4000. Thirty-five were flying by February 1988.
One small single place machine providing 150 knot cruise on only 40hp caused minor sensation amongst would be constructors when it appeared in the marketplace around 1985. The Starlite was conceived by design engineer and computer buff Mark Brown as a sleek, easy to build runabout. Marketed in kit form, the package was complete with everything required with one exception, the trim colour, which the designer reasoned would remain the choice of the individual constructor.
Having grabbed everyone’s attention, the next from the Brown stable was the ¬two place Pulsar. Using a similar form of construction as the Starlite, the Pulsar has undergone extensive flight testing in preparation for release in kit form.
Built up from premoulded sandwich composite parts made of pre-pregnated fibreglass surrounding a structural foam core, the Pulsar fuselage halves come as moulded units epoxied together at joints consisting of internal flanges; no wet lay ups are required. Parts are simply taped together as the epoxy glue cures, then the tape is removed.
Composite sandwich bulkheads are cut to shape, using full size templates, by the builder and are attached by fibreglass tapes and epoxy filler. Three bulkheads support the wings, seats and undercarriage. Construction simplicity is a feature of Mark Brown’s designs. Wing construction differs considerably from that of the fuselage, being substantially from wood. The mainspar, machined from aircraft spruce, has factory laminated tapered unidirectional fibreglass spar caps both top and bottom to reduce inboard bending. One inch thick, pre-cut, foam ribs are spaced eight inches apart and one sixteenth inch thick plywood is wrapped around and bonded to the structure to form the aerofoil. Each spar extends inboard and overlap inside the fuselage, pinned together and to the fuselage with five-eights shear pins, glider style. The tailplane is likewise removable, providing a road transportable/ confined storage aircraft. Modern epoxy adhesives and new flexible polyurethane finishes virtually eliminate the main disadvantages of wood built aircraft and, properly protected from moisture, the designer claims that the Pulsar will survive as long as full composite and aluminium counterparts.
Preliminary flight tests of the Pulsar, powered by a water cooled two stroke 64 hp Rotax 532, have demonstrated encouraging performance figures and fuel economy.
Engine: 40hp Rotax 447
Wingspan: 21’6″
Length: 16’5″
Useful load: 250 lb
Max speed: 140 mph
Cruise: 100 mph
Stall: 42 mph
Range: 400 mi
Seats: 1
SL-1 Star-Lite
Wing Span: 6.5 m
Length: 5 m
Height: 1.2 m
MTOW: 200 kg
Fuel Capacity: 19 ltr
Maximum Speed: 104 kts
Optimum Speed: 87 kts
Take Off Distance: 244 m
Landing Distance: 305 m
Absolute Ceiling: 13,000 ft
Optimum Ceiling: 10,000 ft
Maximum Range: 340 NM
Maximum Climb Rate: 800 ft/min
Seats: 1
A B-2 Special achieved 2nd (214.9mph) at the 1934 Thompson Trophy race.
Alden Brown incorporated some novel features in his Racer NR71Y #203. The cockpit enclosure had no break or reversal in the fuselage contour. Top of the transparent enclosure was faired into the body lines and the fuselage forward of the cockpit was cut down at an angle of about 10 degrees with the fuselage centreline. Vision forward was poor during ground operations and still marginal in the air.
The Brown had been designed for a retractable undercarriage but time did not permit its installation, so it was fitted with cantilever struts and completely enclosed wheels. It was painted a light blue.
Alden Brown’s plane suffered a mishap on its first take-off at the Nationals. Roy Minor was at the controls. The close fitted wheel pants filled with mud and locked the wheels, causing the ship yo rear up enough to damage the cowl and propeller. As it came to rest the gear also collapsed so the ship was out of competition for the balance of the races.
Lee Shoenhair was the pilot in 1933. During the early part of the year he and Alden experimented with a retractable gear but were unable to get it to function properly so they reverted to the original gear. Lee was careful about use of the wheel pants and when in question on a slightly muddy or rough field these were not used. The aircraft appeared as often in 1933 without wheel pants as it did with them. She now wore the Gilmore Oil insignia and a dorsal tail fin with a small headrest above the glassed-in cockpit enclosure. This improved lateral stability and increased the pilot’s vision. The racer placed fourth in the 1000 cubic inch displacement free-for-all at the Nationals. During this race Lee experienced super-charger trouble with the engine and achieved only 137.52 mph. This was the last year the Alden Brown Racer appeared at the races. After that its whereabouts are unknown.
Model 203’s wing span was 18-19 feet and its length about the same.
Before WWI, Leon de Brouckère of Belgium designed and built Farman-like pusher biplanes, which were equipped with Deperdussin-style controls. The 1912 three-seat machine was powered by a 50 hp Gnôme rotary and was described as a “military type”.
