Flying Trikes In South Africa
Global Aviator|December 2019
Flying in an open cockpit with the wind in your face is little short of exhilarating, whether over coastal waters, bushveld or open country.
Mike Wright
Flying Trikes In South Africa

There are numerous ways of experiencing this but no craft makes this easier and more affordable than a microlight.

The trike is designed to take you safely and comfortably across countryside that can only be experienced from the air. Explore new horizons, beaches and bushveld teeming with game, or fly off on a breakfast run with friends who share your spirit of adventure and love of wide open spaces. What is amazing is to be able to take off and land in about 60 m.

The main manufacturer of the trikes produced in South Africa is Solo Wings of Pinetown, KwaZulu Natal, which is responsible for building the Aquilla trikes. Trikes are also imported mainly from the UK.

Outlay

Expect for pay about R350 000 for a brand new microlight and the fuel consumption of the Rotax 582 powered version is only 12 litre per hour with one person on board and Mogas is used. You can also fit a Rotax 912 engine or Japanese HKS one.

Microlights can carry a passenger and up to 50 litre fuel giving it quite a range. Typical speeds of a basic trike are around 88km and the stall speed is very low at 56km.

Wing loading is low at 19 kgs per sqm - much lower than your average Boeing or Airbus.

How do they work

Weight shift trikes are controlled by moving the chassis and aviator’s weight around the wing by way of a control bar. Move bar left for a right turn bar right for a left turn. The bar in is needed to descend and bar out to climb along with appropriate throttle which is foot controlled.

Trikes are stable and extremely forgiving by nature. The wing has a built-in flex capability to facilitate better general handling. Where permitted you can easily land on a secluded beach and soft sand doesn’t present an issue.

Transport

هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة December 2019 من Global Aviator.

ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.

هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة December 2019 من Global Aviator.

ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.

المزيد من القصص من GLOBAL AVIATOR مشاهدة الكل
Edelweiss, The Sound of Music, Grossglockner And Snow, Lots And Lots Of Snow
Global Aviator

Edelweiss, The Sound of Music, Grossglockner And Snow, Lots And Lots Of Snow

Austria is a wonderland of mountains, green pastures, lakes and . . . mountains

time-read
10+ mins  |
August 2021
Zimbabwe Air Rally 2021 Part two
Global Aviator

Zimbabwe Air Rally 2021 Part two

The following day we were up early to watch the departure air show once again, it is a large amount of razzle-dazzle to be honest.

time-read
4 mins  |
August 2021
Boeing 727 One Crash Per 2 30 6300 Flying Hours
Global Aviator

Boeing 727 One Crash Per 2 30 6300 Flying Hours

The Boeing 727 is a narrow-body airliner. The first 727-100 rolled out 27 November, 1962, first flew on 9 February, 1963, and entered service with Eastern on 1 February, 1964.

time-read
6 mins  |
August 2021
Taking Flight On Another World
Global Aviator

Taking Flight On Another World

The Mars Helicopter, Ingenuity, is a technology demonstration model to test powered, controlled flight on another world for the first time. It hitched a ride to Mars on the Perseverance rover. Once the rover reached a suitable "airfield" location, it released Ingenuity to the surface so it could perform a series of test flights over a 30-Martian-day experimental window.

time-read
7 mins  |
August 2021
Thales Completes Successful First Flight Of New UAS With Range Capabilities Of Over 100 Km
Global Aviator

Thales Completes Successful First Flight Of New UAS With Range Capabilities Of Over 100 Km

• With a hybrid propulsion system for optimum safety, endurance and discretion, Thales's UAS 100 long-range unmanned air system for civil, government and military users will be able to operate at ranges of more than 100 km. • UAS 100 combines world-class flight safety performance with the compact design required for unmanned air systems, and complies with future European regulations for drone flights over populated areas. • The system will meet the requirements of a broad range of missions, including infrastructure inspection, coastal surveillance, border surveillance, event security, search-and-rescue and military operations.

time-read
2 mins  |
August 2021
Dutch Squadron Finalises F-16 Operations
Global Aviator

Dutch Squadron Finalises F-16 Operations

The Royal Netherlands Air Force 322 squadron based at Leeuwarden air force base terminated its operations on the F-16 “Fighting Falcon” early July (2021). With the gradual ongoing new deliveries of its successor, the Lockheed Boeing F-35A “Lightning II”, it was time for the squadron to focus only on the embedding of the new jet in the unit.

time-read
3 mins  |
August 2021
Double Ended Project: Where Is It Now
Global Aviator

Double Ended Project: Where Is It Now

Traditionally, bush and STOL aircraft have been little more than modified certified trainers, with engine and prop upgrades, or the addition of fatter tyres. However there have been attempts to improve the safety aspect of this type of flying.

time-read
2 mins  |
August 2021
Dyke Delta Lookalike Fighter Kit Plane
Global Aviator

Dyke Delta Lookalike Fighter Kit Plane

The Dyke JD-2 Delta is an American homebuilt aircraft designed in the United States in the 1960s and marketed for amateur construction. It is a monoplane with retractable tricycle undercarriage and seating for four.

time-read
2 mins  |
August 2021
Pratt & Whitney Canada Advances Sustainable Hybrid-Electric Propulsion Technology, Contributing to Canada's Green Recovery Plan
Global Aviator

Pratt & Whitney Canada Advances Sustainable Hybrid-Electric Propulsion Technology, Contributing to Canada's Green Recovery Plan

Pratt & Whitney Canada (P&WC), plans to advance its hybridelectric propulsion technology and flight demonstrator programme as part of a $163M CAD investment, supported by the governments of Canada and Quebec.

time-read
3 mins  |
August 2021
Airbus showcases the A350-1000 for the first time in Russia at the MAKS 2021 International Aerospace Show
Global Aviator

Airbus showcases the A350-1000 for the first time in Russia at the MAKS 2021 International Aerospace Show

Airbus demonstrated its latest technological innovations and projects implemented in Russia at the International Aerospace Show which took place in Zhukovsky from 20 to 25 July.

time-read
2 mins  |
August 2021