Celair Eagle 300

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Eagle 300
RoleGeneral aviation light aircraft
National originSouth Africa
Manufacturer Celair (Pty) Limited
DesignerPieter Celliers
First flight4 April 1990
Number built1

The Celair Eagle 300 was a light aircraft with STOL capability [1] developed in South Africa in the late 1980s and early 1990s. [2] Only a single prototype was constructed.

Contents

Design

The Eagle 300 was a strut-braced, high-wing monoplane of conventional design. [2] The pilot and up to five passengers sat in an enclosed cabin, but the passenger seats were removable to make room for cargo. [2] It had a conventional tail and was equipped with fixed, tailwheel undercarriage. [2] The portside, rear fuselage incorporated a large, upward hinging door for cargo loading. [2]

The central fuselage was built from a steel tube structure, and the wings had a single steel spar, [2] [3] but otherwise, the Eagle 300 was constructed largely of composite materials. [2] [3] [4] [5] A honeycomb of low-pressure/elevated-temperature (LPET) fibreglass and Nomex honeycomb was used throughout. [2]

Development

Pieter Celliers' firm Celair was the South African distributor for Christen and Pitts. [6] In August 1987, Celliers engaged the South African government's Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) to develop a 4-6 seat aircraft [3] [6] that was simple and rugged. [3] [5] [6]

Celliers wanted to use composite materials for construction, and developed a sailplane, the Celair GA-1, in parallel with the Eagle to validate construction methods. [3] [6] When the GA-1 proved successful, he began construction of the Eagle [6] at Celair's Roodewal factory near Ermelo. [3]

The prototype, registered ZS-WLD, made its first flight on 4 April 1990. [2] Shortly after this, Celliers displayed it at the Aviation Africa 90 trade show at Rand Airport. [6]

Celliers' plans for the Eagle were to obtain American FAR 23 and South African DCA certification [2] and to put it into production by 1992. [2] [4] [5]

By 1993, development had ceased and Celair was out of business. [7] In February 1993, the rights to the Eagle design were put up for sale. [3]

Specifications

Data from Lambert, Munson & Taylor 1992, p.263

General characteristics

Performance

Notes

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References

  1. ↑ Taylor 1993, p.926
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Lambert, Munson & Taylor 1992, p.263
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Airscene Headlines, p.61
  4. 1 2 Flugerprobung, p.21
  5. 1 2 3 Celair starts Eagle test program
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Becker 1990, p.288
  7. ↑ Taylor, Lambert & Munson 1993, p.343

Bibliography

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