Sapphire

Does yours have all the modifications that have come up?

The wing warping was given away quickly in its development. This one has flaperons. Stalls at 20 some knots and cruises at 50 kts. and vne is arount 60 to 100kts depending on your source. Burns abut 6 litres per hour which is good for endurance but not getting from A to B. Good low performance motor glider.

It may come off my my wish list. However, there must be someone out there game to still fly it. Perhaps those and other recommended modifications solved the problems. The space shuttle went about the same way. It's called tombstone technology. Every means of transport developed works on that principle

Has anyone ever flown a single seater Chinook? There is one for sale with a 277 rotax near me. I know all about the engine but the research I have done on the aircraft is disturbing. It has two significant problems. The tail boom has snapped off killing a few pilots. In flight, the frame, especially the tail section, can distort causing no control over pitch. The a/c pitches nose first into the ground. There is a video of that happening. There are a few cases of near misses and fatalities to that. The boom has a modification to strengthen it and the tail section can be brased with wires. This plane is not to be confused with the two seater which is made by a different manufacturer. Norm

Hi Mathew,Innisfail is as old stomping ground for me. I lived in Seaforth north of Mackay and been to and through Innisfail many times. Will keep a lookout for Friar Tuk [alias?]Norm

Hi,My name is Norm and I just joined the forum a few minutes ago which has a lot of good information. I went straight to a Sapphire search and found the Sapphire I recently aquired (0051) being discussed in 2007. After three months of fixing up and licencing it, I did my first flight last Sat.at Narrogin WA airfield. It still has an open canopy and was holding onto my glasses and working the throttle at the same time. It is nice to fly compared to the Thruster I spent five hours in to get my ultralight licence. Will be making some wheel fairings and putting on an enclosed canopy. Has anybody done this? Honest Steve, at Sapphire, recommends I hide all sharp objects when installing the canopy as it is a frustrating job.Again hi to all and hope to hear from some Sapphire fans.Norm