Aerolight Eagle Ultralight
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In this short film, Chris, Brian, Dale and Steve of Southern California take a vintage Aerolight Eagle Ultralight through it’s paces in the California desert at El Mirage dry lake bed. We all got a chance to fly the aircraft, and when we were done, Brian held the Altitude record amongst us at nearly 5000 feet above sea level (msl), Chris held the longest distance flown at nearly 60 miles. When the Eagle came to us it was a broken down mess from Brian’s Brother. We spent countless hours restoring it and replacing the engine with a Hirth F33 Engine. We replaced the wooden propeller with a carbon fiber 3 bladed model. Even the wing was replaced after we miraculously found one in excellent shape that had been stored for years by another ultralight enthusiast. If you enjoyed this video, send me a message.
22 Comments
March 29th, 2010 at 9:54 pm
Mine had (2) Chrysler Westbend 10HP engines set up so if one quit the other would continue to power the prop. We are at about 3500 feet above sea level here and you need all the power you can get. So no 10 hp is not enough. The one in the video here is a later model with one 28 HP engine, a much better set up than mine was.
March 29th, 2010 at 9:54 pm
thanks.could it fly on only 10hp?
March 29th, 2010 at 9:54 pm
This originally had (2) 10 hp engines and no you cant stall or spin these because of the canard wing at the front. It is at a greater angle of attack and stalls first, thus lowering the nose increasing the speed ensuring that the main wing does not stall. I have about 80 hours on one of these and tried many times to stall it even high speed climbs then cutting power with the nose up as far as I could get it. The nose just drops with no wing drop or loss of altitude.
March 29th, 2010 at 9:54 pm
Hello guys,
GREAT VIDEO !!!!!!!!!!!
Thank you so much for this one.
I just have purchased one on floats.
Can’t wait ti try it out for my self.
I fly in Boca Grande Florida and I will send also some videos.
THANK YOU ALL and HAPPY FLY’N
Cheers
Marcel
March 29th, 2010 at 9:54 pm
Oh and you should turn the music down or take it out when you talk it’s really hard to hear you.
March 29th, 2010 at 9:54 pm
3500 rpm is idle? That’s a little excessive, even for an ultralight isn’t it?
March 29th, 2010 at 9:54 pm
Anything that flies using an airfoil can stall and spin.
March 29th, 2010 at 9:54 pm
as I recall from 1980 this flew on only 10hp.was that the engine it came with?Is it really true it couldnt be stalled or spun?
March 29th, 2010 at 9:54 pm
have two for sale $3200 for both
808-282-5287 John
March 29th, 2010 at 9:54 pm
have two eagles i an selling forb $3200 almost new
8082825287 in
or
March 29th, 2010 at 9:54 pm
i dont think they make ‘em anymore – they were old when i flew next to one in 1990
March 29th, 2010 at 9:54 pm
Do you guys mind divulging the approx. cost of one of these kits? Lifelong dream of mine is to build one. What about an “in flight” camera next time? Nice soundtrack as well.
March 29th, 2010 at 9:54 pm
i know a guy who used to instruct on these during the early microlighting days in the uk, he used to run underneath and shout up at the students. Fantastic stuff
March 29th, 2010 at 9:54 pm
The tracking along side about 6 minutes in, and on, was quite impressive and a unique perspective.
March 29th, 2010 at 9:54 pm
Hey Guys, its great to see an eagle in the air. I have 2 double eagles but 1 of them is new the other is in vgood nick I found you via Gordon and Fred in Warrigul Victoria Australia.
March 29th, 2010 at 9:54 pm
Send me your email @ csynnes@hotmail.com for the pictures. As far as flying goes, it’s tricky in a crosswind. I’d recommend a calm morning with plenty of runway. With the canard there’s no stall, indeed easy to fly but like anything else you have to get used to it. DO a LOT of taxi tests to get used to the steering on the ground. Other than that lotsa fun.
March 29th, 2010 at 9:54 pm
would love detailed pictures, we have only just picked it up, probably a month to get it flying, we are hang gliding/ultralight & Gyrocopter pilots, any problems flying the wing, everything i have read says they are very easy to fly? cheers Gordon
March 29th, 2010 at 9:54 pm
I applaud you efforts. How far along are you? I recommend this site for wierd parts http://www.mcmaster.com/ Also, if you would like any detailed pictures, I’d be happy to provide them. Here are some more sites for parts etc.
http://www.flyaboveall.com/lazer.htm
http://www.ulparts.com/
http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/inpages/westach_ultralite.php
http://www.800-airwolf.com/securestoreinfo.htm
March 29th, 2010 at 9:54 pm
fantastic guys, we are restoring an eagle here in Australia, any tips cheers Gordon
March 29th, 2010 at 9:54 pm
man that looks like fun
March 29th, 2010 at 9:54 pm
I honestly think this is one of the best videos on the site. Fantastic… an absolute joy to watch.
March 29th, 2010 at 9:54 pm
very cool. I helped some guys put one together when I was a kid and it hit a bump on the runway and broke the wooden propeller right away. Very dissapointing, so this makes me happy.