Pazmany PL-4
The Pazmany PL-4A is a single-seat, single-engine sport aircraft developed in the United States and first flown in 1972. It is marketed for homebuilding from plans, and 686 sets had sold by 1985. The PL-4A is a conventional, low-wing cantilever monoplane with an enclosed cabin and fixed, tailwheel undercarriage. The design features a T-tail, chosen to facilitate folding the wings. Construction throughout is of metal, using standard extruded sections for the longerons and pop rivets as the basic fastener. The standard powerplant is a Volkswagen air-cooled engine of 60 hp (45 kW) Construction time is estimated to be around 1,000–1,500 hours.
The PL-4A won the "Outstanding New Design" and "Outstanding Contribution to Low-Cost Flying" awards at the 1972 EAA Fly-In. By 2000 more than 50 had been built and flown.
Variants
- Pazmany PL-4A
- Standard single seater, normally powered by a 60 hp (45 kW) Volkswagen air-cooled engine with V-belt drive reduction.
- Denight 100 D2 Special
- Modified PL4A design to seat two side by side. Main differences are an increase in length by 17 in (450 mm) and in fuselage width by 12 in (305 mm), a more powerful 115 hp (86 kW) Avco Lycoming O-235 flat-four engine and a conventional tail. Maximum take-off weight is 1,250 lb (567 kg).
Specifications
Data from Jane's All the World's Aircraft 1985–86, p.608
General characteristics
- Crew: One pilot
- Length: 16 ft 7 in (5.04 m)
- Wingspan: 26 ft 8 in (8.13 m)
- Height: 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)
- Wing area: 89 sq ft (8.3 m2)
- Empty weight: 578 lb (262 kg)
- Gross weight: 850 lb (385 kg)
- Powerplant: 1 × Converted Volkswagen air-cooled engine , 50 hp (38 kW)
Performance
- Maximum speed: 125 mph (201 km/h, 109 kn)
- Range: 340 mi (545 km, 300 nmi)
- Service ceiling: 13,000 ft (3,960 m)
- Rate of climb: 650 ft/min (3.3 m/s)