American Aerolights Double Eagle
The American Aerolights Double Eagle is a two-seat ultralight aircraft that can also be configured for single pilot operation.
| American Aerolights Double Eagle | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Monterey Park Police Double Eagle | |
| Role | Ultralight aircraft |
| National origin | United States of America |
| Manufacturer | American Aerolights |
| Designer | Larry Newman |
| First flight | 1982 |
| Introduction | 1982 |
| Developed from | American Aerolights Eagle |
Development
The Double Eagle is a modification to the Eagle ultralight designed by Larry Newman in 1980. The aircraft features a stall-resistant canard design with a two axis control system. The entire aircraft could be folded into an 11 ft by 9 inch package for car transport.[1]
Operational history
The Monterey Park, California Police Department was the first police department to fly an ultralight aircraft for patrols, using the Double Eagle in 1982. The program lasted six months and was shelved after seven engine failures in flight. An example of the aircraft resides in the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center,[2] and at one time also in the EAA AirVenture Museum in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.[1]
Specifications (variant specified)
Data from Smithsonian
General characteristics
- Capacity: 2
- Length: 15 ft (4.6 m)
- Wingspan: 35 ft (11 m)
- Height: 10 ft (3.0 m)
- Empty weight: 310 lb (141 kg)
- Gross weight: 660 lb (299 kg)
- Powerplant: 1 × Cuyuna 430R air-cooled two-cylinder inline, 35 hp (26 kW)
References
- "American Aerolights Double Eagle". Archived from the original on 19 October 2010. Retrieved 20 October 2010.
- "American Aerolights Double Eagle". Archived from the original on 5 September 2010. Retrieved 20 October 2010.