The Second Electric Airplane to Fly in Oregon

Dean Sigler Electric Aircraft Components, Electric Powerplants, Sustainable Aviation 1 Comment

Ken Dawe and Vim Toutenhoofd own a pair of Aeriane Swifts (“Manufactured and Improved by Aeriane since 1993”) powered flying wings they hangar at a small airport outside Newberg, Oregon.  Vim’s has a single-cylinder, two-stroke engine for self-launching and Ken’s has the Eck-Geiger HPD-10, 10-kilowatt motor, controller and battery system, as part of the Icaro 2000 setup designed and sold by Manfred Ruhmer. After Vim and Ken studied the videos left by Manfred Ruhmer on charging the batteries and hooking everything up,  and a few frustrating delays (flat tires mainly), Ken was able to start the motor, taxi out and take off.  The craft showed a good rate of climb and full control of the ultralight airplane.  The wing alone weighs around 100 pounds, the pod and electrical components might add another 100, and Ken doesn’t look over 150 pounds.  The 350-pound total takeoff weight seemed to accelerate and climb well on the 13 horsepower available, with the 1.4-meter (4.6-foot) …