Engineering:Bede HB-1 Super Demoiselle
| HB-1 Super Demoiselle | |
|---|---|
| General information | |
| Type | Homebuilt ultralight |
| Designer | |
| History | |
| First flight | 1966 |
The Bede HB-1 Super Demoiselle was an ultralight aircraft designed by Jim Bede[1][2] in 1966[2] and marketed for homebuilding.[1][2] It was designed to be powered with engines in the 65-to-100-horsepower (48 to 75 kW) range.[1][2] It was named in honour of Albert Santos-Dumont's pioneering aircraft Demoiselle (French for "Dragonfly"), which had a similar general configuration.[1][2]
Design
The Super Demoiselle carried its pilot within an open framework suspended on struts beneath a parasol wing.[3] A Bede advertisement of the time described "the 'open-air' flying thrill only possible with this type of aircraft."[4] The prototype featured an aerodynamic fairing in front of the pilot's seat though.[3]
Its V-tail was mounted on a boom that extended from the wing,[2] and a single piston engine driving a tractor propeller was mounted on the leading edge of the wing.[2] Although the prototype was fitted with a Continental A65, the design was intended for various engines up to 100 horsepower (75 kW), with a Volkswagen air-cooled engine named as a specific example.[2][4]
It had a fixed, tricycle undercarriage, the main units of which were enclosed in spats on the prototype.[2]
The wing was constructed of 15 identical fiberglass sections mounted on an aluminum spar,[2] the first of Bede's designs to introduce this construction method to the home builder.[1] The same Bede advertisement stated that the wing could be fabricated in a single evening.[4]
The tail boom was constructed from the same material as the wing spar, while the tail surfaces were made from an aluminum honeycomb material.[2] The framework surrounding the pilot's seat was square-section alloy tube.[2]
The entire airframe consisted of only 85 components,[2] and Bede claimed it could be built in just a couple of months for $700 (this price not including engine and accessories.)[4]
The prototype was registered N590A in November 1966 and remained on the FAA registry until cancelled in 1974.[5][lower-alpha 1] The design was only offered for sale for a short time, appearing in only a single edition of Jane's All the World's Aircraft, the 1967–68 edition.[6]
Specifications (prototype)
Data from Taylor 1967, p.197
General characteristics
- Crew: 1
- Length: 18 ft 5 in (5.61 m)
- Wingspan: 26 ft 0 in (7.92 m)
- Height: 7 ft 3 in (2.21 m)
- Wing area: 105 sq ft (9.8 m2)
- Empty weight: 525 lb (238 kg)
- Max takeoff weight: 767 lb (348 kg)
- Powerplant: 1 × Continental A65 air-cooled, four-cylinder, horizontally opposed engine, 65 hp (48 kW)
Performance
- Maximum speed: 75 mph (121 km/h, 65 kn) (estimated at MTO weight)
- Rate of climb: 900 ft/min (4.6 m/s) (estimated, at sea level, at MTO weight)
Notes
References
- ↑ Note that the FAA records the manufacturer name as "DANOISELLE" (sic)
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft 1982, p.516
- ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 Taylor 1967, p.197
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Taylor 1967, p.196
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 "Bede Homebuilts [advertisement]". Sport Aviation (Oshkosh, WI: The Experimental Aircraft Association): 55. September 1966.
- ↑ "Aircraft Inquiry" [N590A]
- ↑ Taylor 1971, p.754
Bibliography
- "Aircraft Inquiry [N590A"]. Federal Aviation Administration. https://registry.faa.gov/AircraftInquiry/Search/NNumberResult?nNumberTxt=N590A.
- The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft. London: Aerospace Publishing.
- Taylor, John W. R. (1967). Jane's All the World's Aircraft 1967–68. London: Sampson, Low, Marston.
- Taylor, John W. R. (1971). Jane's All the World's Aircraft 1971–72. London: Sampson, Low, Marston.
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