Formed 1941 at Coffeyville, Kansas, successor to Akron Aircraft Inc., to market Funk Bros. Model B two-seat monoplane. Production resumed after Second World War, aircraft redesignated B-85-C Bee, with Continental C-85 engine. Manufacturing rights acquired in 1962 by Thomas H. McLish of Sharon, Pennsylvania.
Era
Fumat 1911 monoplane
The 1911 Fumat monoplane was designed and built by Victor Fumat in France.
Span: 26’3″
Length: 26’3″
Fünfdecker Himmelsleiter
Built and demonstrated at Flugplatz Johnannisthal in 1911, but apparently did not fly. Later, the machine was modified, and it appears questionable whether the revision flew either. The secretive Merx Fünfdecker had “Himmelsleiter” (sky ladder) built and kept in its shed – hidden from prying eyes. When the first flight test was to take place, it turned out that the apparatus was higher than the door and could not be pulled out of the shed. Also known as the Mehrdecker-Versuchsflugzeug von J. Merx, (multiplane-experimental).
Fulton FA-2 Airphibian / FA-3 Airphibian / Continental Inc Airphibian / FA-2 / FA-3
Robert Edison Fulton, an engineer of Danbury, Connecticut, in 1946 built a roadable aircraft which entered production, albeit only in very limited numbers, as the first fully licensed flying automobile in the United States.
His Airphibian was a four wheeled, two seat, high wing monoplane with a removable airframe which could be rolled away on its own retractable wheels after disconnection, leaving an aluminium bodied soft top coupe car.
Fulton used a 165 hp Franklin aero-engine for air and road drive, with automatic hook up of all flying controls. The aircraft’s rudder pedals became brake and accelerator in the car, while landing lights doubled as headlamps. A safety device prevented the engine starting with the propeller installed unless all flying controls were connected and locked.
The airphibian was used extensively on business and pleasure trips.
The prototype Airphibian flew on November 7,1946, and was certificated in December 1950 as the Fulton Model FA-2 Airphibian. A production model, designated FA-3, appeared in 1954.
Life magazine published a photo story of a flying visit to the theatre by the Fultons, who flew 100 km (62 miles) from their Connecticut home to New York’s La Guardia Airport at 180 kph (110 mph), unhitched the aircraft portion and drove across town to Broadway, all in less than an hour. A fabric top was buttoned from the windscreen for driving in bad weather.
So successful was the Airphibian that Fulton announced in 1949 that he would build production versions for sale at $7000 to $9000 each. ‘It flew fine,’ a test pilot reported during the Airphibian’s certification trials, ‘and it drove well, too, but it just didn’t perform in the air because of all that weight and drag.’ By 1950 the first three Airphibians had been driven over 322,000 km (200,000 miles) and made more than 6000 car/plane transformations. In all eight were built before Robert Fulton sold the rights to the design to private investors who never pursued it.
The Fulton FA-3 Airphibian two-place, powered by a 160 hp Franklin engine featured improvements including cantilever wings and outrigger wheels, which support the wings when detached, which retract. They were fixed in previous types.
Fulmar Rival
A 1984 hang glider.
Rival 15
Wing area: 15.4 m²
Wing span: 10 m
Aspect ratio: 6.5
Hang glider weight: 34 kg
Rival 17
Wing area: 16.8 m²
Wing span: 10.5 m
Aspect ratio: 6.56
Hang glider weight: 35 kg
Fulmar Isis
A 1981 hang glider.
Fulmar Gold
The Gold 2 appeared in 1981.
Fulmar Trident
Single seat single engined flex wing aircraft with weight shift control. Rogallo wing with keel pocket. Pilot suspended below wing in trike unit, using bar to control pitch and yaw/roll by altering relative positions of trike unit and wing. Wing braced from above by kingpost and cables, from below by cables; floating cross tube construction with 50% double surface enclosing cross tube; pre-formed ribs. Undercarriage has three wheels in tricycle formation; no suspension on any wheels. Push right go left nosewheel steering independent from yaw control. Optional brake on nosewheel. Aluminium tube trike unit, without pod. Engine mounted below wing driving pusher propeller.
The single seater Trident trike, which incorporates a Rival 183 ft’ (17.0 m2) sail, is the basic model of the Fulmar range. The Trident entry in the London to Paris in September 1982 was one of the most noticeable, not because of the quality of the pilots and the performance of the aircraft, though these were above reproach, but because the sponsor of the Fulmar team, Dior, had decorated the left wing of the Trident with ‘Jules’ logo in large letters. This has earned this single seater the ‘Macho Jules’ nickname throughout most of Europe. The aircraft is offered ready built with a Hirth F 263R engine without reduction drive. This trike is also available with the same engine but fitted with a 2.611 reduction drive.
Length overall 12.6 ft, 3.80 m.
Height overall 9.2ft, 2.80m.
Wing span 34.5ft, 10.50m.
Nose angle 130 deg.
Total wing area 183 sq.ft 17.0 sq.m.
Wing aspect ratio 6.5/1.
Wheel track 5.1 ft, 1.80 m.
Wheelbase 5.5 ft, 1.66 m.
Nose¬wheel diameter overall 12 inch, 30 cm.
Main wheels diameter overall 12 inch, 30 cm.
Engine: Hirth 293 cc engine.
Max power 23 hp at 3800 rpm.
Propeller diameter and pitch 59 x 22 inch, 1.50 x 0.55 m.
V belt reduction, ratio 2.6/1.
Max static thrust 155 lb, 70 kg.
Power per unit area 0.13 hp/sq.ft, 1.4hp/sq.m,
Fuel capacity 2.6 US gal, 2.2 Imp gal, 10.0 litre in main tank; 4.0 US gal, 3.3 Imp gal, 15.0 litre in reserve.
Empty weight 243 lb, 110kg.
Max take off weight 464 lb, 210kg.
Payload 221 lb, 100 kg..
Max wing loading 2.53 lb/sq.ft, 12.4 kg/sq.m.
Max power loading 20.2 lb/hp, 9.1kg/hp.
Max level speed 44 mph, 70 kph.
Never exceed speed 50 mph, 80 kph.
Max cruising speed 37 mph, 60 kph.
Economic cruising speed 32mph, 52kph.
Stalling speed 22 mph, 35 kph.
Max climb rate at sea level 400 ft/min, 2.0 m/sec.
Min sink rate 344 ft/min at 30 mph, 1.7 m/s at 48 kph.
Take¬off distance 100 ft, 30 m.
Landing distance 65 ft, 20 m.
Service ceiling 6560 ft, 2000 m.
Range at average cruising speed 50 mile, 80km.
Fulmar HP-16 Héron
Single seat single engined high wing mono¬plane with two axis control. Wing has unswept leading and trailing edges, and constant chord; cruciform tail. Pitch control by eleva¬tor on tail; yaw control by fin mounted rudder; control inputs through stick for pitch/yaw/roll. Wing braced from below by struts; single surface. Undercarriage has three wheels in tricycle formation; no suspension on any wheels. Push right go left nosewheel steering indepen¬dent from yaw control. Optional brake on nosewheel. Aluminium tube framework, without pod. Engine mounted below wing driving pusher propeller.
The MP 16 Heron was designed by Pierangelo Mez¬zapesa, the driving force behind Fulmar. The prototype made its first flight on the 1 February 1983, and became available from April 1983 with two engine options: Sachs 330cc (see per¬formance characteristics below) or Hirth F 263R of 383 cc, which develops at 3900 rpm, an equivalent power (23 hp) to the Sachs. Despite the solidity of its tubular structure, the MP 16 Heron is foldable for transport on a road trailer, its space requirement then being 16.5 x 5.9 x 5.9 ft (5 x 1.74 x 1.75 m). A side by¬side two seater version is at the design stage.
Length overall 16.5 ft, 5.00 m.
Height overall 6.7ft, 2.00m.
Wing span 32.1ft, 10.0m.
Constant chord 4.7ft, 1.40m.
Dihedral 5 deg.
Sweepback 0 deg.
Tailplane span 8.2 ft, 2.50 m.
Total wing area 151 sq.ft, 14.0 sq.m.
Fin area 5.4 sq.ft, 0.50 sq.m.
Rudder area 14.0 sq.ft, 1.30 sq.m.
Tailplane area 13.5 sq.ft, 1.25 sq.m.
Total elevator area 9.2 sq.ft, 0.85 sq.m.
Wing aspect ratio 7.1/1.
Wheel track 5.9ft, 1.75m.
Nosewheel dia¬meter overall 12 inch, 30cm.
Main wheels diameter overall 16 inch, 40cm.
Engine: Sachs SA 340 engine.
Max power 22hp at 5250rpm.
Propeller diameter and pitch 41 x 18 inch, 1.05 x 0.46 m.
No reduction.
Max static thrust 155 lb, 70 kg.
Power per unit area 0.15hp/sq.ft, 1.6hp/sq.m.
Fuel capacity 2.6 US gal, 2.2 Imp gal, 10.0 litre in main tank; 5.3 US ga1, 4.4 Imp gal, 20.0 litre in reserve.
Empty weight 1991b, 90kg.
Max take off weight 419 lb, 190kg.
Payload 220 lb, 100kg.
Max wing loading 2.78 lb/sq.ft, 13.6 kg/sq.m.
Max power loading 19.1 lb/hp, 8.63 kg/hp.
Load factors design; +6.0, 3.0 ultimate.
Max level speed 44 mph, 70 kph.
Never exceed speed 50 mph, 80kph.
Max cruising speed 37mph, 60kph.
Economic cruising speed 34mph, 55kph.
Stalling speed 20 mph, 32 kph.
Max climb rate at sea level 300 ft/min, 1.5 m/s.
Min sink rate 400 ft/min at 31 mph, 2.0 m/s at 50 kph.
Best glide ratio with power off 7/1 at 34 mph, 55kph.
Take off distance 115 ft, 35 m.
Land¬ing distance 66 ft, 20 m.
Service ceiling 6560 ft, 2000 m.
Range at average cruising speed 50 mile, 80km.
Fulmar
Fulmar was one of the first manufacturers in Europe to motorise a hang glider, their Fulmar I, of 183 sq.ft (17.0 sq.m) area, using a Soarmaster American supplied engine, as the Fulmar 1B.
Fulmar 1B
Engine: Soarmaster.
Wing area: 183 sq.ft (17.0 sq.m).
