Correspondingly named, the Sparrow is the drop keel ultralight cousin of the Falcon. Its bolt-together aluminum frame carries a useful load of up to 240 pounds, depending on the engine (choice of Rotax 447 or 503, or Hirth 2704 or 2706). Cruising airspeed is 63 mph.
Bolt-together all-aluminum frame. Components done on CNC. Contains all fasteners, cables, wheels, engine mount, rotor head, pod, tall tail and horizontal stabilizer, and joystick.
Kit for the Sparrow: (Without engine, seat tank, propeller, rotors and instruments) 2001: $3795. Plans for the Sparrow 2001: $175
Engines: Rotax 447, 503; Hirth 2704 Propeller: 2 or 3-blade Warp Drive Rotor Blades: Rotor Hawk 23 or 24 rotor disk Width 64″ Height 84″ Length 9′ Min Speed 15-20 mph Cruise 63 mph Empty Weight 254 lbs Useful Load up to 240 lbs (depending on engine)
Both Falcon and Falcon II are accommodating to most aircraft engines, including Subaru, Rotax and Hirth, and both cruise at 60 to 70 mph with a top speed of 95 mph. But two passengers can ride side-by-side in the Falcon II while the Falcon only has room for one. Both are available with or without enclosure.
Falcon kit (without engine, propeller, rotor blades, instrument and seat tank) 2001: $3995 Falcon II kit (without engine) 2002: $11,950, but may cost less, depending on option choices.
The airframe is aluminium bolted together. Engine options include 70 hp Subaru, Rotax or VW. Rotor blades: 22-28’, 8 1/8” aluminium bonded and riveted.
Complete kit available as well as individual components and modification kits for upgrading Bensen-type machines to the Falcon configuration. Features main gear suspension using standard 2 x 2 Bensen axle tube. Full enclosure available. Kit contains everything less engine, prop, rotor blades, instruments and seat tank. Info pack: $3.00 Kit: $3,995 in 2009.
A two seat tandem autogyro. A high profile open-frame design utilising a T tail, full suspension landing gear and large propeller. Also available: parts, components, pre-welded airframe kit.
High-profile open-frame design built of 2 x 2 aluminum tubing bolted together and welded. Utilizes tall tail, full suspension landing gear with 9″ travel, large propeller. Also available: parts, components, pre-welded airframe kit.70-min video $27.95 Assembly manual now available.
Plans were available for the single-seater Dominator models in 2001: $175. Plans: US$175 in 2009.
Depending on model and engine size, Dominators are available fully assembled: $12,000 to $29,000 in 2001.
The craft also holds the official world altitude record in its class, at 24,463 ft.
South Africa Founded in 1953 to develop the Minicopter single-seat light autogyro, prototype of which was designed and built by Mr. L. L. Strydom and flown in 1962. Several were built for South African customers.
A Canadian-built two seat enclosed frame gyrocopter. Introduced in 1990, the RAF 2000 conforms to 51 per cent homebuilt rules. A conventional autogyro, the 2000 is suitable for training, crop-spraying, power line inspection, predator control, stock mustering and aerial photography. Quoted build time 150-250 hours. The composites RAF rotor blade features 6061-T6 aluminium spar and foam filler, on a patented 5x10cm folding (two-part) rotor mast, with rubber mast bushing and adjustable CG. Removable doors.
The landing gear is tricycle configuration, fixed, with optional speed fairings.
Power is from one 97kW Subaru EJ22 16-valve four-cylinder liquid-cooled engine driving a ground-adjustable three-blade Warp Drive composites propeller through RAF cog belt reduction gear, ratio 2.10:1. Fuel capacity is 87 litres of premium unleaded Mogas, of which 79 litres are usable. Optional capacity 95 litres, of which 87 litres usable. Fuel consumption of the carburated version is 20.1 litres/h, and injected version 18.2 litres/h, both at 80% power.
A pilot and passenger sit side by side in an enclosed cabin. Can be flown with doors removed.
An agricultural version has a 114 litre tank, moulded to fit into the back and bottom of the cabin enclosure, supplying a 24-nozzle spraybar fitted behind and below the engine. Spray width is 6.7 to 7.3m.
Versions include: 2000 STD-SE: Basic version. 2000 GTX-SE: Top-of-range model; kit includes carbureted version of engine, rotor brake, heater, dual controls and adjustable pitch and roll trim assembly. 2000 GTX-SE FI: Fuel-injected version of GTX.
The 2-place rotorcraft is available in kit form. The GTX SE includes a variety of performance enhancing options. Standard engine is a 130 hp four cycle Subaru EJ22. Engine, propeller and instrument packages are included in RAF kits. The airframe is bolted square and round tube aluminium, with shock mounted landing gear.
RAF 2000 GTX SE
The RAF 2000 GTX SE has rough field gear and is powered by a standard Subaru Legacy EJ-22 fuel injected engine (running on avgas) rated at 130 hp. RAF manufacture their own blades with aluminium spars and foam cores covered with composite material. They include a 2 inch strip of Kevlar on the leading edge. The fibreglass rotors fitted to the RAF 2000 GTX-SE are lifed at 500 hours.
Standard features include a cockpit heating system, three point harness, removable doors, a fold down mast, and adjustable centre of gravity provision. The fold down mast reduces the height to 6 foot 6 inch.
At least 500 are believed completed and flown by the end of 2002. 88 were current on the Canadian register in 2002.
COSTS: 2000 STD-SF kit price US$20,615, including Subaru engine (carb version); 2000 GTX-SE US$22,500, including carburated Subaru; 2000 GTX-SE FI US$25,500, including fuel-injected Subaru (all 2003).
All Aero 