Engineering:OMAC Laser 300
| Laser 300 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| General information | |
| Type | Business aircraft |
| National origin | United States |
| Manufacturer | OMAC |
| Number built | 3 |
| History | |
| First flight | 11 December 1981 |
The OMAC Laser 300, originally named the OMAC I is a canard pusher business aircraft built in the United States in 1981 but which never saw production.
Design
It is a canard layout powered by a pusher turboprop engine, and a high, swept wing carrying endplate fins on the tips.[1] Construction was of metal throughout. The cabin could seat six to seven passengers, and incorporated quick-change seating, allowing rapid conversion for freight.[2] Early in development, plans existed to produce a turbofan-powered version of the design,[3] but this did not happen.
Development
The first prototype flew on 11 December 1981[4] and OMAC ("Old Man's Aircraft Company") hoped to obtain type certification by mid 1982.[5] This was delayed by a ground accident, and then a landing accident caused by the failure of an undercarriage locking pin.[5] A second prototype flew on 19 February 1983,[5] and certification was expected "no later than December 1984",[6] but in late 1983, the process had barely started.[7]
In the mid-1980s, it was tested at the Langley 12-Foot Low-Speed Tunnel to investigate its stability and control characteristics.[8] Special attention was paid to behaviour at high angles of attack and to stall and spin resistance,[8] and it was found to have poor longitudinal stability at high angles of attack.[8] The wing was modified, with extensions added to the trailing edge flaps, and a discontinuous, leading edge droop added to the outboard section of the wings.[8] Stall characteristics were good since the canard provided a nose-down pitching moment.[8] Changes were tested on the second prototype before the design was frozen in April 1985.[9] Additionally, production machines were to have a different fuselage with a round cross-section, a redesigned nose, and additional baggage space.[10][11]
OMAC relocated from Reno, Nevada to Albany, Georgia in January 1985, as Ayres Corporation was to manufacture them at their Albany plant.[5][12] Certification was then anticipated by mid-1986.[5] and by late 1986, a third prototype was under construction, incorporating refinements that had been tested on the second machine.[13] This machine was built alongside three other Laser 300s, together representing the first four of thirty aircraft that Omac hoped to build by the end of 1987.[14] The third prototype, and first production machine flew on 29 July 1987 and certification was now expected by May 1988. By now, production was running a year late, and projected costs had risen from $US 550,000 to $875,000.[15] The aircraft was displayed at the NBAA show in Dallas, Texas in October 1988, by which time 56 hours of flight testing had been carried out without incident.[16] Certification was delayed again, and expected by late 1989 or early 1990,[17][16] however, $20 million was required for certification and production,[18] but insufficient funds were raised and development stalled.[19] Omac continued to offer the aircraft as late as 1993, along with an improved version designated the Laser 360.[20]
Specifications (Laser 300 prototype)
Data from Jane's All the World's Aircraft 1987–88 p.480
General characteristics
- Crew: two pilots
- Capacity: five passengers
- Length: 29 ft 7 in (9.02 m)
- Wingspan: 41 ft 6 in (12.65 m)
- Height: 9 ft 10 in (3.00 m)
- Wing area: 230 sq ft (21 m2)
- Empty weight: 3,800 lb (1,724 kg)
- Gross weight: 6,400 lb (2,903 kg)
- Powerplant: 1 × Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-135A , 750 hp (560 kW)
Performance
- Cruise speed: 290 mph (470 km/h, 250 kn)
- Range: 2,165 mi (3,484 km, 1,881 nmi)
- Service ceiling: 30,000 ft (9,100 m)
- Rate of climb: 2,000 ft/min (10 m/s)
See also
Aircraft of comparable role, configuration and era
References
Citations
- ↑ Taylor. 1989, p.938
- ↑ Flight International, 3 April 1982, p.777
- ↑ Fulton, 1980, p.158
- ↑ Flight International, 26 December 1981, p.1887
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 Jane's All the World's Aircraft 1985–86, p.474
- ↑ Flight International, 28 May 1983, p.1538
- ↑ Flight International, 22 October 1983, p.1093
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 Chambers 2003, p.145
- ↑ Jane's All the World's Aircraft 1987–88, p.479
- ↑ Flight International, 12 October 1985, p.2
- ↑ Flight International, 19 October 1985, p.15
- ↑ Flight International, 5 January 1985, p.13
- ↑ Flight International, 18 October 1986, p.16
- ↑ Flight International, 6 December 1986, p.16
- ↑ Flight International, 13 August 1988, p.18
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 Flight International, 29 October 1988, p.8
- ↑ Flight International, 20 August 1988, p.6
- ↑ Flight International, 11 February 1989, p.9
- ↑ Sarsfield, 1991, p.34
- ↑ Flight International, 15–21 September 1993, p.36
Bibliography
- "Ayres readies Laser 300 production". Flight International: 13. 5 January 1985.
- Chambers, Joseph R. (2003). "Concept to Reality: Contributions of the Langley Research Center to US Civil Aircraft of the 1990s". Washington D.C.: NASA. https://ntrs.nasa.gov/api/citations/20030059513/downloads/20030059513.pdf?attachment=true.
- "Laser 300 shows changes". Flight International: 2. 12 October 1985.
- "Making History". Flight International: 34–36. 15–21 September 1993.
- "OMAC 1". Flight International: 1538. 28 May 1983.
- "OMAC 1 takes to the air". Flight International: 1887. 26 December 1981.
- "Omac and Avtek progress". Flight International: 1093. 22 October 1983.
- "Omac builds Lasers". Flight International: 16. 6 December 1986.
- "Omac builds modified Laser 300". Flight International: 16. 18 October 1986.
- "Omac displays Laser 300". Flight International: 8. 29 October 1988.
- "Omac flies Laser 300". Flight International: 6. 20 August 1988.
- "Omac freezes Laser 300". Flight International: 15. 19 October 1985.
- "Omac hunts for funds". Flight International: 9. 11 February 1989.
- "Omac ready for second flight". Flight International: 777. 3 April 1982.
- "Production Laser 300 flies". Flight International: 18. 13 August 1988.
- Jane's All the World's Aircraft 1985–86. London: Jane's Publishing. https://archive.org/details/janesfightingshi8586shar.
- Jane's All the World's Aircraft 1987–88. London: Jane's Publishing. https://archive.org/details/janesallworldsai0000unse.
- Sarsfield, Kate (2–4 October 1991). "Corporate Aircraft Buyer's Guide". Flight International: 29–42. http://www.flightglobal.com/pdfarchive/view/1991/1991%20-%202571.html. Retrieved 2008-12-29.
- Taylor, Michael J. H. (1989). Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation. London: Studio Editions.
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