Page 42 - Volume 15 Number 8

Cessna has received more than 100 skycatchers from shenyang aircraft Corporation, where fabrication and assembly take place. the aircraft are reassembled and tested at Yingling aviation in Wichita, Kan.
Walking around the exterior, Natalie pointed out the spring-loaded manual flaps, like those of the old Cessna 140; if tied down in a strong wind, it would be wise to latch them in the extended position to avoid banging up and down. She cautioned against yanking the ailerons down to the end of their travel when checking free movement; that can lock them over-center and require a trip to the cockpit to wiggle the stick to free them up. Otherwise, the wings are conventional.
Unlike many foreign LSA airplanes, they do not fold for take- home storage. The unheated pitot tube is on the left wing, while the pneumatic stall warner is on the right side, and the usual fuel vent tube is behind the left strut. Use the full mark in the filler neck opening when topping the tanks, we were told, or over-full fuel will drip out the vent onto the ramp. Some things never change.
40 • TWIN & TURBINE
The engine is a lightened version of the venerable O-200, with a smaller oil tank and no primer system. It’s a bulletproof, little direct-drive four- banger, well known to American shops, although it weighs more than the similar-powered Rotax 912S that powers most LSA imports. Oil is checked through a small door atop the cowling, showing only low and add marks. The first dipsticks chafed in the crankcase, so a retrofit fix was needed. A single exhaust stack is used. The cowling is removable only with screwdriver use. Four fuel drain points are tapped, one under each wing tank and two under the belly.
The nose landing gear does not steer, so checking brakes during preflight and before starting is a must. Main tires are small and the spring gear struts should require no maintenance. The sheet- metal tail cone is more robust in appearance than those of the pod- and-boom composite LSA airplanes, although the rear window is more
of a skylight, because the upper tail cone is straight. Conventional tail surfaces are employed; the rudder has strong centering springs, so Natalie showed me how to lean against it to get a look at the aft bulkhead area. The right elevator has an electrically adjusted trim tab with energizing trailing-edge flaps bent perpendicular to the airflow, for extra effectiveness. There’s no trim wheel, so if you lose electrics you’ll have to do without the trim.
Boarding is, like most LSA cockpits, a bit contortionistic, but not bad; at 5-foot-8, I could step in with one leg, sit and then bring in my other leg. The panel-mounted control column helps. The seats do not adjust, but the rudder pedals can be moved fore and aft with a twist knob at floor level. With shoulder harness and belts clipped together, we were comfortably seated.
The Skycatcher’s interior is very spartan, no doubt to hold
AUGUST 2011