Thu, Aug 11, 2011
Low-Speed Portion Of Envelope First To Be Explored
Sonex Aircraft, LLC is excited to announce that the SubSonex jet
aircraft prototype, JSX-1, made its maiden flight Wednesday at
Wittman Regional Airport in Oshkosh, WI. The SubSonex was piloted
by Bob Carlton, an air show performer and owner of Desert Aerospace
LLC. The flight lasted approximately 14 minutes and focused on
exploring the low-end of the aircraft's speed envelope including
stalls and a low approach in the landing configuration.
"It's an exciting day for Sonex," said SubSonex designer and
Sonex Aircraft, LLC President John Monnett. "We have a test flight
plan to expand the envelope of the aircraft, and we'll see where
the project takes us from here."
"It was great - flies like an airplane," Carlton said after the
flight. "The faster I went, the better it felt." Carlton was
selected to fly the aircraft based on his experience pioneering
light jet aircraft. Bob Carlton is best known for his air show
performances with the Super Salto jet sailplane, and is the
developer of the Bonus Jet two-seat glider. The engines used on
Carlton's aircraft are the the PBS TJ-100, the same one used on the
SubSonex.
The tiny jet, given the tongue-in-cheek model name "SubSonex"
before its public unveiling at Oshkosh 2009, has been evolving
since. The original engine was sourced from Microjet Engineering
and was designed for radio-controlled aircraft, but lacked an
engine control unit or factory support, and never entered volume
production. The Velka Bites PBS TJ-100 engine, which claims sales
of 200 units as of December 2010, was then substituted, but damage
to the plane during early taxi tests in June of 2010 dictated
revisions to the landing gear configuration.
While it shares elements of design philosophy with the other
kits produced by Sonex, the company says the JSX-1 has no parts
commonality with the rest of the line. There is still no firm
commitment to bring the aircraft to market, or timetable for
doing so.
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