Piel Zephir

CP.80
A CP.801
General information
Type	Racing aircraft
National origin	France
Manufacturer	homebuilt
Designer	Claude Piel
History
First flight	ca. 1974

The Piel CP.80 Zephir (or Zef), Piel CP.801 and Piel CP.802 are racing aircraft developed in France in the 1970s and marketed for homebuilding. ^[1] They are compact, single-seat, single-engine monoplanes with low, cantilever wings. ^{[2] [3]}

Design and development

The pilot sits in a fully enclosed cockpit and the tailwheel undercarriage is fixed. ^{[2] [3] [4]} Although designed to be built of wood, ^[3] the first CP.80 to fly (registered F-PTXL and named Zef) was built from composite materials by Pierre Calvel and beat even the designer's own CP.80 into the air. ^[2] Calvel's CP-80 was entered in the French Formula One air races in 1976, but failed to qualify. ^[5]

Variants

Piel CP.80

Single seat racer, typically powered by a 100 hp (75 kW) Continental O-200 for Formula One Air Racing. ^{[4] [6]}

Piel CP.801

Piel CP.802

Specifications (CP.80)

Data from ^[7]

General characteristics

• Crew: 1
• Length: 5.3 m (17 ft 5 in)
• Wingspan: 6 m (19 ft 8 in)
• Height: 1.7 m (5 ft 7 in)
• Wing area: 6.2 m² (67 sq ft)
• Aspect ratio: 5.8
• Airfoil: NACA 23012
• Empty weight: 260 kg (573 lb)
• Max takeoff weight: 380 kg (838 lb)
• Fuel capacity: 40 L (11 US gal; 8.8 imp gal)
• Powerplant: 1 × Continental C90-8F 4-cyl air-cooled horizontally-opposed piston engine, 67 kW (90 hp)
• Propellers: 2-bladed wooden fixed pitch propeller, 1.52 m (5 ft 0 in) diameter

Performance

• Maximum speed: 310 km/h (190 mph, 170 kn)
• Cruise speed: 240 km/h (150 mph, 130 kn) at 60% power at 1,200 m (3,900 ft)
• Stall speed: 95 km/h (59 mph, 51 kn)
• Never exceed speed: 380 km/h (240 mph, 210 kn)
• Range: 450 km (280 mi, 240 nmi) at 60% power
• Service ceiling: 6,000 m (20,000 ft)
• Rate of climb: 12 m/s (2,400 ft/min)
• Wing loading: 61.2 kg/m² (12.5 lb/sq ft)
• Power/mass: 0.177 kW/kg (0.107 hp/lb

References

1. Taylor, Michael J. H. (1989). Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation. London: Studio Editions. p. 725. ISBN   0-7106-0710-5.
2. Taylor, John W.R.; Munson, Kenneth, eds. (1977). Jane's all the World's Aircraft 1977-78 (Sixty-eighth year of issue. ed.). London: Jane's Yearbooks. p. 496. ISBN   9780531032787.
3. Markowski, Mark (1979). The Encyclopedia of Homebuilt Aircraft. Blue Ridge Summit, Pennsylvania: TAB Books. p. 256. ISBN   0-8306-2256-X.
4. Bayerl, Robby; Martin Berkemeier; et al: World Directory of Leisure Aviation 2011-12, page 96. WDLA UK, Lancaster UK, 2011. ISSN 1368-485X
5. TAYLOR, JOHN (31 July 1976). "French Formula One". Flight International: 262–263.
6. Tacke, Willi; Boric, Marino (2015). "World Directory of Light Aviation 2015-16". Flying Pages Europe SARL: 101. ISSN   1368-485X.
7. Taylor, John W.R., ed. (1975). Jane's all the world's aircraft, 1975-76 (66th annual ed.). New York: Franklin Watts Inc. pp. 77–78. ISBN   978-0531032503.