Glasair GlaStar


The Glasair GlaStar is an American amateur-built aircraft that was designed by Tom Hamilton and produced by Stoddard-Hamilton Aircraft and later Glasair Aviation. It was first flown in 1994 and was superseded in production by the Glasair Sportsman 2+2 c. 2005. When it was available the aircraft was supplied as a kit for amateur construction.

Design and development

The GlaStar features a strut-braced high-wing, a two-seats-in-side-by-side configuration enclosed cockpit accessed via doors, fixed tricycle landing gear or conventional landing gear and a single engine in tractor configuration.
The aircraft is made with a welded steel fuselage, with a fiberglass covering and aluminum wings. Its span wing employs a NASA GA-2 airfoil at the wing root, with a NASA GA-2 mod at the wing tip. The wings have an area of, mount flaps and can be folded for ground transportation or storage. The acceptable power range is and early engines used included the Rotax 912ULS. The aircraft proved underpowered with the Rotax, and later the Lycoming O-320 and the Lycoming O-360 four-stroke powerplants were used. The landing gear can be rapidly converted between tricycle and taildragger configurations. The cockpit is wide and includes a large baggage area that will accommodate of cargo.
Initial factory estimated construction time was 1200 hours.

Accidents and Incidents

In 1996, a service recall was issued for the control yoke assembly of select GlaStar kits. In 1999, one of the GlaStar kits not included in the recall crashed, killing its two occupants.

Variants

;Symphony SA-160
;Glasair Sportsman 2+2
;Plane Driven PD-1

Specifications (GlaStar)