While the annual AERO show in Friedrichshafen, Germany was cancelled, there was still news to report…
16 April 2020
A brand new aircraft, the Elixir, designed, developed and built in France, has been type certified by the European Aviation Safety Agency.
The two-seat Elixir is a clean-sheet design, constructed as a one-piece carbon fibre moulding using the OneShot technology learned in the yachting industry. It has been certified in EASA’s new ‘lighter touch’ CS-23 airworthiness regulations for VFR flight.
Arthur Léopold-Léger, CEO of Elixir Aircraft, said, “On 20 March, 2020 the Elixir in its 100hp VFR version received its type certificate in the queen of all categories: CS-23, under the most recent amendment (5), which reflects the highest level of safety possible today.
“Although it is hard to rejoice when our entire planet is fighting an invisible enemy, we should look back to fully appreciate how far we have come since our first meeting with the team at the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) in charge of the certification on 24 January 2017, only three years ago.
“The Elixir, to our knowledge, is the only modern light aircraft in the world designed from a blank sheet of paper to have obtained its certification following the latest amendment of the most rigorous category, CS-23, and doing this with safety objectives regularly exceeding the certification objectives!
“On a personal note, I would like to congratulate all of those who made this possible: members of Elixir Aircraft, close advisers and consultants of course, but also the EASA team, our investors, our customers, our banks, our design and production subcontractors, the administrations and of course our families, whose support and encouragement are irreplaceable. Bravo and thank you!
“Two other excellent pieces of news. Production of the first four aircraft has recently started, and work on the future Elixir Aircraft plant at La Rochelle Airport began in December 2019. The delivery of this 2,300sqm facility dedicated to the production and assembly of the Elixir was initially scheduled for the end of May 2020.”
When C-19 restrictions were imposed in France, like most companies, Elixir had to introduce different ways of working.
“The production team was put on short-term working leave and the engineers and sales staff were switched to home office as soon as the first containment order was issued,” said Arthur. “It is therefore at a distance from each other that we received the huge reward for which we fought so hard!”
The OneShot way of construction is to design and manufacture complex parts such as a wing as one-piece, rather than a collection of sub-assemblies which have to be drilled, rivetted or glued. The fuselage, canopy arch, ailerons, flaps and fin are also made this way. Elixir says the entire airframe comprises just eight parts.
“Fewer parts and fewer assemblies mean fewer failures, less maintenance and therefore lower costs,” says Elixir.
“At the same time, safety is enhanced by the simplicity
of the structure and performance is improved by the reduced weight.”
The company claims operating costs of €40-45 per hour, covering maintenance and fuel over 2,000 hours up to the engine TBO. Fuel burn is 12.5 litres/hour. Elixir is offering the aircraft under a rental scheme to flying clubs at €70 per hour, which includes maintenance and insurance, and is based on 30 flying hours a month (360 pa), typical for French flying clubs.
Spec includes Garmin G3X Touch avionics, centrally mounted on the panel, with a selection of traditional analogue instruments in front of the pilot. There’s a BRS emergency whole aircraft parachute as standard. Cruise speed of the certified aircraft fitted with a 100hp Rotax 912iS is 130kt at 75 per cent power setting, with an endurance of 6 hours. Stall speed is 45kt, Vne 157kt. Max take-off weight is 544kg.
A more powerful version fitted with a 141hp Rotax 915iS is in the works, along with an IFR version and a glider tug.
Just because you have an aircraft that’s in demand doesn’t mean you can stand still, and Belgian manufacturer Sonaca Aircraft is pushing ahead on several fronts.
Production of its existing Sonaca 200 VFR trainer moved into a brand new 2,000sqm facility at Namur Aerodrome last September. Sonaca started then with one production line but in February this year, added a second. That means it can now assemble eight aircraft simultaneously.
“The goal is to deliver two aircraft per month very soon, and three aircraft per month by the end of this year,” Sonaca’s Pierre Van Wetter told FLYER. “Next year we plan to produce four aircraft a month. We expect to deliver 30 aircraft this year.”
Sonaca manufactures all airframe parts itself, contracting those to its parent company, Sonaca Group, a well-known aerospace engineering supplier. It takes roughly nine months from cutting metal to rolling a complete aircraft out of the factory door with just two months spent on the production line.
Fifteen aircraft have been delivered so far, all to flying schools in Belgium, France, UK and Turkey. A new customer, Aero Locarno, in Switzerland has just ordered five.
So far, 70 per cent of sales are for the Sonaca 200 Trainer Pro equipped with a Garmin glass cockpit. However, there’s a substantial 30 per cent who still prefer analogue instruments. That’s led Sonaca to develop a New Generation model.
“We still have lots of customers who want analogue instruments for basic training,” continued Pierre. “We want to continue to offer this but with more modern instruments. We only want TSO certified instruments in the aircraft so we waited for the new Garmin GI 275 so we could to replace the analogue Attitude Indicator and CDI with digital ones. A big advantage is that no vacuum pump is required.”
Another new derivative Sonaca will shortly introduce is a short take-off aircraft, achieved with a new coarser pitch propeller, that will also meet Germany’s strict noise limits.
“We are working on this right now,” said Pierre. “There are two goals: to have a short take-off for grass runways and for high altitudes, and to decrease the noise below 65db.
“We will decrease the noise with new exhausts and also the shorter take-off distance means we will be at a higher altitude when the noise measurement is taken. We expect this to be available by July or August, depending on paperwork.”
Czech light aircraft maker Bristell was due to launch two new aircraft at AERO, aimed at different parts of General Aviation. They are the B23, an all-new, low-wing aircraft that is due to receive a full type certificate from EASA very soon under the new CS-23 airworthiness regulations, and the B8, the first high-wing aircraft Bristell has ever made. The B8 will be a new entry into the new 600kg microlight class.
The B23 is a major step up for Bristell. Originally the company was planning another 600kg light sport aircraft (LSA) certified for night VFR. That was three years ago before the new ‘lighter touch’ CS-23 regs were announced. But after talking to EASA, engineers there persuaded Bristell founder Milan Bristela and his son Martin to aim higher than LSA and go for the 750kg weight limit under CS-23 – which would also be a straight drop-in for the USA’s FAR-23 regs.
“We decided this would be much better,” Martin told FLYER. “So, we have an aircraft with an empty weight around 435kg, maximum take-off weight of 750kg, and full of 120 litres of fuel – that’s 91kg. So, if you have full fuel, you still have 224kg for people.
“One big difference between CS-23 aircraft and a RTC (Restricted Type Certificate) LSA is flight testing, with much higher forces. So we decided to build a completely new construction including wing, the fuselage is longer, aluminium fittings are bigger, and the tail is bigger for the stability test.”
Bristell went to renowned Swiss test pilot Damian Hischier to conduct the test flights.
“So, Damian flew the aeroplane and he said it is absolutely without problem, certifiable,” said Martin. “But it could be better if you want to make the best aircraft? We said, ‘Yes’ because we don’t want to produce a compromised aircraft needing vortex generators or other aerodynamic fixes. We want to produce just the best. We ended up flying 88 test flight hours before EASA’s pilot flew it and said he thought it would be a very good trainer.”
The B23 also fulfills Bristell’s other criteria: to be able to fly night VFR, to have a ballistic emergency whole aircraft parachute, and to burn mogas, rather than avgas. For that, Bristell has stuck with the proven and certified 100hp Rotax 912S3 engine fitted with a constant-speed three-blade MTV prop. Base price of the aircraft is €199,000.
Bristell’s other new model, the B8, is expected to start flight tests in early summer, with first deliveries expected by autumn. It came about after being asked at Oshkosh if a high-wing model was in the works. It wasn’t, the good reason being that Milan Bristela is not a fan of the compromises required, usually struts on the wing and cable-operated controls.
“But then he remembered making a balsa wood model of a Cessna Cardinal when he was 20 years old, which had no struts,” explained Martin. Plus, as every good businessman knows, it pays to have an alternative product… just in case.
Bristela’s reasoning for not liking cable controls is safety. “It’s OK for a professional maintenance company to set up cable controls properly but it’s very difficult to instruct LSA owners how to do it.”
Italian gyrocopter manufacturer Magni Gyro was planning to launch its all-new M26 at AERO but with C-19 affecting Italy so severely, it made the only sensible choice, which was to delay the launch. All we know is that the M26 is a clean-sheet design built around the latest 141hp Rotax 915iS. Meanwhile the first 915iS-equipped ‘Plus’ series are being delivered or, in the case of the two M24 Plus models, pictured above, heading for UK owners, stuck at the factory until travel restrictions are lifted. The extra power of the 915iS is a boon for gyrocopters and Magni is equipping the existing M16 Tandem Trainer, the M24 Voyager and fully-enclosed M24 Orion.
Looking just a bit more muscular, Flight Design’s 2020 CTLS has a re-shaped and longer cowling with integrated landing light and extra air intake. There’s also new landing gear with redesigned wheel fairings, and new Blackfin prop and spinner. Reduced drag and higher top speed are claimed. Flight Design has also settled on all Garmin avionics: G3X flight-deck, GMC 507 autopilot and ‘pilot assist’, and GMA 245 audio panel. Flight Design is also producing a version of the CTLS to meet the new 600kg ‘opt-out’ microlight category.
Meanwhile, the all-new F2 announced a year ago will be available as an LSA from June and as a 600kg microlight from October. Flight Design is also pursuing EASA CS-23 certification with the F2, and has November this year as its target, complete with a CO2 offset scheme. If that wasn’t enough for the German manufacturer, it’s also working on a fully electric F2e that it expects to go into production with a two-hour range and CS-23 certification in December 2021 – the same month as its F4 four-seater. Phew!
This is the latest from Czech company Zlin Aviation which makes Super Cub-style aircraft under the name Savage. It’s called the Norden, an identifier for Nordic and Scandinavian countries including Denmark, to promote its bush-flying credentials. It’s an all-new aircraft, with a bigger fuselage and new metal wing complete with a retractable electric slat system and manual slotted flaps to give both short take-off and landing as well as a reasonable cruise speed. Special attention has been paid to the windscreen to improve the view forward in STOL ops while angling it backwards to reduce drag. Empty weight is under 360kg so it will be available as an LSA in the USA and in the new 600kg microlight class in Europe. Standard power unit is a 100hp Rotax 912 but Zlin says a 141hp 915iS will follow and also a 300hp experimental-only version using an Edge EPeX300Ti engine. Other options include several sizes of fuel tank, cargo area, tundra tyres, 18 colour options for the new carbon seats and a similar number for the panel finish.
