| Luton Minor | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Role | Ultralight |
| Manufacturer | Light Aircraft Association |
| Designer | C.H. Latimer-Needham |
| First flight | 3 March 1937 |
| Produced | 30 |
The Luton L.A.4 Minor was a 1930s British single-seat high-wing ultra-light aircraft. The prototype was built by the Luton Aircraft Limited, and design plans were later adapted and copies sold for homebuilding.
The L.A.3 Minor ultralight was powered by a 35 hp Anzani inverted-vee air-cooled engine, and was of spruce, ply and fabric construction. It was designed by C.H. Latimer-Needham, and built by Luton Aircraft at Barton-in-the-Clay, Bedfordshire in 1936, using the fuselage and components of the earlier experimental L.A.2 tandem-wing aircraft. The prototype L.A.3 Minor, registered G-AEPD, first flew on 3 March 1937 at Heston Aerodrome. [1] The aircraft was a successful flyer despite the low-powered engine, and it was then redesigned for home construction. Designated the L.A.4 Minor, it had a strutted undercarriage and parallel wing struts. The first L.A.4 Minor was built at the company's new factory (the Phoenix Works) at Gerrards Cross in Buckinghamshire. It was fitted with a 40 hp ABC Scorpion two-cylinder horizontally-opposed engine. All subsequent Luton Minors were home-built from plans sold by the company.
The Phoenix Works had burnt down during 1943, and Luton Aircraft had closed, so designer C.H. Latimer-Needham and A.W.J.G. Ord-Hume created a new company in March 1958 to take over the design rights for the Luton Minor. Latimer-Needham updated the design to take more modern lightweight four-cylinder engines and an increased all-up weight. The redesigned aircraft was designated L.A.4A Minor. The design, and subsequently the aircraft, has been built all over the world as a homebuilt aircraft with a wide variety of engines, with the plans for the aircraft being passed on to the Popular Flying Association (now the Light Aircraft Association) in the UK. [2] [3] [4]
Reviewers Roy Beisswenger and Marino Boric described the design in a 2015 review, saying, "it has a great deal of period charm and gives a back-to-basics feel, although performance doesn't match more modern designs. Predictable handling and sturdy construction make it a joy to own. A white scarf is a compulsory accessory.". [4]
Data fromBritish Civil Aircraft 1919–1972: Volume III, [5] Jane's All the World's Aircraft 1958-59 [6]
General characteristics
Performance
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