Engineering:Barber Snark
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| Barber Snark | |
|---|---|
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| General information | |
| Type | Light aircraft |
| National origin | New Zealand |
| Manufacturer | homebuilt |
| Designer | Bill Barber |
| Number built | about 6 |
| History | |
| First flight | 1987 |
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The Barber Snark[1] is an innovative two-seat microlight aircraft, designed and built in New Zealand by Bill Barber.[2][unreliable source?] Bill's first attempt at designing a microlight aircraft was the Snark HA-1 single-seat monoplane. Powered by a Rotax 503 two-stroke, it used a long shaft to drive a pusher propeller mounted behind the Y-shaped tail (much like the Lear Fan 2100). It was registered as ZK-FOU and first flew in 1987. Bill was not happy with its flying characteristics, so he began again.
His prototype Snark HA-2 first flew in 1991. Six aircraft of this second design[3][unreliable source?] have been built. Some of these have varying specifications, such as different engines, construction materials, main undercarriage and control surfaces, resulting in reduced weight and increased performance.
The Snark's streamlined tandem layout, small frontal area, and attention to detail mean that the aircraft has excellent performance, being able to cruise at over 100 knots despite having an engine output of only 80 bhp.
Design and development
(Source materials for this section are derived from Tim Cripp's article in Today's Pilot magazine of September 2006)
The Snark is a tricycle aircraft of composite carbon-kevlar construction. Its glider-like cockpit accommodates a pilot and passenger in tandem, the passenger sitting behind and higher than the pilot. The centrally mounted shoulder-wing lies behind the pilot, who has unrestricted visibility. The 80 hp (60 kW) engine is mounted on the main bulkhead behind the cockpit, driving a pusher propeller. Wing control surfaces on the third Snark are flaperons, while the fourth and later aircraft have conventional ailerons and flaps.[4][unreliable source?] Above the propeller, aft of the cockpit, is a slender carbon-fibre boom supporting a T-tail empennage. The high-level tailplane is mounted above the propeller slipstream. There is a springy nylon skid beneath the fin to protect the propeller from ground strikes.
Former RNZAF Squadron Leader and aviation journalist Tim Cripps[5] wrote an extensive article in Today's Pilot, highly praising the Snark, and describing its history, ingenious design, and flying ability.[6][verification needed] The aircraft under test, ZK-JPS, was fitted with Rotax 912S flat-four engine producing 100hp.
Pivoting main gear
The main undercarriage legs are a Grove alloy beam. The legs are pivoted fore-and-aft by a hydraulic pump hand-operated within the cockpit. On the ground, the wheels are positioned aft of the empty CG. Once aboard, the pilot pumps the wheels forward to allow a correct CG for take-off and landing. When back on the ground and parked, the hydraulic pressure is released, so the wheels move backwards again before the pilot dismounts. This design means that when the cockpit is vacated, there is no inherent tendency for the aircraft to tip backwards, thereby avoiding the risk (common in tandem microlights) of the propeller being damaged or the aircraft left vulnerable to being blown over.
Wings
The removable wings have a "near-laminar" Riblett GA 37 A 315 section, chosen as it has a very low pitching moment. The point of maximum thickness is at 37% of the chord, which is further aft than other typical microlights. The wings taper from root to tip, with both chord and thickness reducing symmetrically.
Propeller
On ZK-JPS, its Arplast composite three-blade, variable-pitch pusher propeller is not mounted directly onto the engine gearbox, but has an 18" (46cm) extension tube to allow clean airflow right to the propeller hub. Bill Barber designed a flexible clutch to successfully overcome torsional vibrations at low engine speeds.
Reception
The Snark received positive reviews in the UK and NZ press. David Laing, a former WWII pilot who assembled the fourth Snark, declared it to be "one of the nicest planes I've ever flown".[2] Tim Cripps added in Today's Pilot, "this is the most enjoyable of the many aircraft I have flown - and that includes the Hunter".
Specifications (Barber Snark)
Data from Treweek[2][unreliable source?]
General characteristics
- Crew: one
- Capacity: one passenger
- Length: 6.24 m (20 ft 6 in)
- Wingspan: 9.3 m (30 ft 6 in)
- Height: 2.43 m (8 ft 0 in)
- Empty weight: 331 kg (730 lb)
- Max takeoff weight: 520 kg (1,146 lb)
- Fuel capacity: 55 litres (15 US gal) usable
- Powerplant: 1 × Suzuki G13 four stroke, 60 kW (80 hp)
Performance
- Cruise speed: 205 km/h (127 mph, 111 kn)
- Stall speed: 61 km/h (38 mph, 33 kn) with flaps
- Never exceed speed: 225 km/h (140 mph, 121 kn)
- Range: 1,040 km (650 mi, 560 nmi)
- Service ceiling: 3,658 m (12,001 ft)
- Rate of climb: 7.12 m/s (1,402 ft/min)
References
- ↑ Note: The name "Snark" is from Lewis Carroll's nonsense poem The Hunting of the Snark.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Treweek, Phillip (3 October 2000). "Barber Snark". Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160305123202/http://www.kiwiaircraftimages.com/snark.html. Retrieved 17 September 2015.
- ↑ List of Snarks [1]
- ↑ "Barber Snark HA/3". 1000aircraftphotos.com. http://1000aircraftphotos.com/Contributions/9704.htm. Retrieved 17 September 2015.
- ↑ Note: In 2007 The Western Telegraph reported that Cripps was badly injured in a flying accident when a homebuilt microlight he was flying from Andreas airfield in the Isle of Man crashed shortly after takeoff: [2]
- ↑ Today's Pilot magazine article, September 2006 page 90
External links
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