"Flying flying sports car" Delivery of "Icon A 5" of a two-seater light aircraft will start in 2016

I already arrived on October 21, 2015 which is the future visited in the movie "Back to the Future", but the car which fly in the sky seems not to be realized still. However, in the United States the fence to the airplane flying in the sky seems to be lowered, and many small aircraft are flying over the sky. Newly announced "Icon A 5"The aircraft called the" light flying sports car "with light weight and high mobility seems to start flying in the US sky in 2016 actually.

Explore the A5 - ICON Aircraft
http://iconaircraft.com

Flying the seaplane of the future, the Icon A5 | The Verge
http://www.theverge.com/2015/11/11/9706138/icon-a5-seaplane-aircraft-video

Icon A5 is based in CaliforniaIcon AircraftA two-seater plane developed by the company. It has a structure that the main wing and engine ride on the head of a small cockpit.


The cockpit capacity is 2 people. It's almost like a cruiser yacht or a sports car.


Icon A5 is an amphibious mini airplane, in the United StatesLight-Sport Aircraft(LSA), which is classified as a genre that does not exist in Japan. LSA was established by the Federal Aviation Administration of the United States in 2004 aiming at the spread of airplane, and it is a genre boasting ease of being able to obtain a license by training for about 20 hours and to be able to maneuver.


The wings of Icon A5 can be folded backwards, and can be transported by car in a trailer as follows.


Although it seems that the lightweight fuselage has improved maneuverability well, in case of emergency, the parachute has developed so that the falling speed of the aircraft can be lowered to a safe level as follows.


The movie which the reporter of The Verge rides in such a real machine of Icon A5 is also made public.

Flying the seaplane of the future, the Icon A5 - YouTube


The two Icon A5 flying from the bridge over the New York-Hudson River.


As if it can float on the water like a boat, Icon A5 can enjoy pilots in various places as amphibious aircraft.


When sitting in the cockpit, it looks something like this, and at the bottom there is a control stick to hold between the feet. It has almost the same instruments panel as a motorcycle or sports car, and it seems to be said that it is a design that distinguishes it from an aircraft having a unique interface.


The engine mounted on the upper part of the back of the cabin is made by Rotax, which has already been established in the world of small airplanesRotax 912Adopted a model called. The naturally aspirated horizontal opposed 4 cylinder 1211 cc engine has 100 horsepower output, the maximum speed is about 180 km / h, it is possible to take off with passengers / cargo of about 200 ~ 250 kg / h. The flying distance is announced as 427 nortical miles (about 790 km).


It is possible to take (take off) from such a jetty.


Two crewmembers got in this way ......


Separation.


The appearance of two Icon A5 which fly at lower altitude than generally imagined. Icon A 5 classified as LSA is limited to a maximum altitude of 10 thousand feet (about 3050 m), and the cabin is not equipped with a pressurized system like a passenger aircraft.


The situation inside the cabin is like this when 2 adult men ride. The Verge reporter sitting on the right side looks like she can not hide the excitement from beginning to end.


While smiling while looking at the top of the window, that's why ....


It was because he was swirling with a large bank in the Hudson Kawakami sky. Due to its compactness and light weight, Icon A5 has high exercise performance and also has high stall (stall) performance.


A state of Icon A5 flying under the streets of New York. Sounds wonderful spectacle will be spreading ... ....


The flight while watching such a scenery should surely be fun.


Two Icon A5 came back ......


I thought that ... · · ·, I was showing the high controllability of gliding skating while keeping the bottom of the boat sliding on the water as it is.


Icon A5 is scheduled to be delivered even by 2016, and it is said that the reservation has already received 1500 or more tentative reservations. If all reservations for 1500 aircraft have reached this agreement, the price is estimated to be about 197,000 dollars (about 24 million yen) per machine. The deposit required for provisional reservation is $ 5,000 per machine (about 6.1 million yen), but if you cancel the purchase it will be refunded in full.

The main specifications announced by the manufacturer are as follows.

【specification】
Number of seats:2
Maximum take-off weight:1510 pounds (686.4 kg)
· Effective loading capacity:430 to 550 pounds (195 to 249 kg)
· Freight capacity (maximum):60 pounds (27.2 kg)
·fuel:Automotive gasoline (octane value 91) or aircraft gasoline (100LL)
·maximum speed:109 mph (approximately 176 km)
· Cargable distance:427 Nautical Mile (leaving a preliminary flight time of about 790 km · 45 minutes)
· Take-off glide distance (above ground / sea level):710 feet (about 216 meters)
· Landing run distance (above ground / sea level):530 ft (about 161 m)
· Sprung sliding distance (water surface · sea level altitude):920 feet (about 280 meters)
· Landing distance (water-surface / sea level altitude):840 feet (about 256 meters)
·engine:Rotax 912 (100 horsepower)

【Machine dimensions】
· Cockpit inner width:46 inches (116.8 cm)
· Wing tip width:34.8 ft (10.61 m)
- Machine body length:23 ft (7.01 m)
· Aircraft height:8.1 ft (2.47 m)

On the gallery page set up at the manufacturer site, you can see even more pictures and movies.

Photos - ICON Aircraft