AMS-Flight Carat
| Carat A | |
|---|---|
| |
| Role | high performance motorglider |
| National origin | Germany |
| Manufacturer | AMS-Flight, Ljubljana |
| First flight | 16 December 1997 |
| Number built | 31 by September 2009 |
The Carat A is a single-seat, high performance motorglider. The sailplane was originally designed and built by Technoflug in Germany and is now manufactured by AMS-Flight in Slovenia.[1]
Design and development
The Crat was designed by Technoflug around the wings and horizontal tail of the Schempp-Hirth Discus sailplane, marrying these to a new fuselage and [[fin]. Structurally the aircraft is a mixture of fibreglass and carbon fibre composites. The wings have PVC foam cores. In plan the wings have parallel chord inner panels, and two outer sections of increasing straight taper. Winglets are an option. Schempp-Hirth airbrakes are mounted on the upper surfaces of the inner panels and turbulators on the underside to ensure a controlled transition from laminar to turbulent flow without separation. The wings have 3° of dihedral.[1]
Like the Discus, the Carat has a high T-tail with separate tailplane and elevators. The cockpit is at the trailing edge of the wing and the Carat has a conventional electrically-operated retractable undercarriage. The non-retractable tailwheel is sterable. Braking is performed using a hydraulic hand-brake mounted on the control stick.
The Carat is powered by an air-cooled, four cylinder, Volkswagen derived, 40##kW (54##hp) Sauer S1800 piston engine. This drives the unique feature of the Carat, its folding two blade propeller: the blades fold forward like spears to minimize drag when the engine is off. This is in contrast to other motorgliders which mostly either store the propeller inside the fuselage, or merely feather the propeller blades. The Carat's propeller is opened by the centrifugal force on the turning blades, working against a folding force provided by a gas damping spring mechanism.[1] This folding mechanism has the advantage of simplicity, but it means that the engine can not be windmill-started if the battery is flat. Because of the forward pointing blades when engine is off, the Carat cannot be towed aloft like traditional sailplanes.[citation needed]
Major features
- Fast cruising speed and long range
- Conventional T-tail with fixed stabilizer and moving elevator
- Retractable landing gear
- Automatic control connections
- Schempp-Hirth air brakes on upper wing surface
- Can be rigged and de-rigged by one person
Specifications
Data from Jane's All the World's Aircraft 2011/12[1]
General characteristics
- Crew: 1
- Length: 6.21 m (20 ft 4 in)
- Wingspan: 15.00 m (49 ft 3 in)
- Wing area: 10.58 m2 (113.9 sq ft) gross
- Aspect ratio: 21.3
- Empty weight: 341 kg (752 lb)
- Max takeoff weight: 490 kg (1,080 lb)
- Fuel capacity: 52 L (13.7 US gal, 11.4 Imp gal) usable
- Powerplant: 1 × Sauer S1800 1-ESIC 1.80 L (109.8 cu in), 4-cylinder 4-stroke, air-cooled, 40 kW (54 hp)
- Propellers: 2-bladed AMS AM KS-F3-1A/140-1 fixed pitch. With engine off, blades fold forward, held by gas damping springs, 1.40 m (4 ft 7 in) diameter
Performance
- Cruise speed: 214 km/h (133 mph, 116 kn) normal at 75% power
- Stall speed: 77 km/h (48 mph, 42 kn) powered. 80 km/h (50 mph, 44 kts) unpowered.
- Never exceed speed: 250 km/h (160 mph, 130 kn)
- Range: 1,026 km (638 mi, 554 nmi) maximum fuel, 30 min reserves
- g limits: +5.3/-2.65[2]
- Maximum glide ratio: 35:1[2]
- Rate of climb: 2.9 m/s (570 ft/min) maximum continuous power[2]
- Rate of sink: 0.75 m/s (148 ft/min) minimum
References