“ICON A5” is an American ultralight seaplane developed by ICON Aircraft . The first flight model was created in 2008, the first production aircraft was released in 2015. A5 belongs to the class of ultralight sports aircraft (LSA, Light-sport aircraft ), which appeared relatively recently: in 2004 in the USA and in 2011 in Europe [4] [5] .
| A5 | |
|---|---|
 ICON A5 prototype on water, 2010 | |
| Type of | seaplane |
| Manufacturer | ICON Aircraft |
| First flight | July 15, 2008 [1] |
| Start of operation | May 2015 |
| Status | delivery of the first production vehicles started [2] |
| Units produced | 2 |
| Unit cost | $ 247,000 [3] |
Construction and Design
A wing type flying boat with a carbon fiber fuselage and retractable landing gear. The 116.8 cm wide cab accommodates two people. Equipped with a 100 hp Rotax 912 iS motor (75 kW) and a three-blade pushing propeller. The wings fold manually or with the optional electromechanical drive.
The fuselage of the aircraft has sponsons to reduce roll on the water, the ends of the wings are equipped with floats. The wing and other elements of the fuselage are designed for maximum stall resistance [6] , in addition, there is an angle of attack indicator in the cockpit. The aircraft is equipped with an emergency parachute [6] , capable of safely landing the entire plane without irreversible damage to the fuselage. This system is mandatory for all ICON A5 registered in the USA and optional in other countries. The controls are maximally simplified compared to other aircraft of this type, and the cabin is more like an automobile interior [7] than an aircraft.
Specifications
Data based on the official website [8] and brochure [9] .
Basic
- Length: 7.01 m
- Wingspan: 10.61 m
- Height: 2.47 m
- Maximum take-off weight: 686.4 kg
- Payload: 195-249 kg
- Luggage: 27.2 kg
- Fuel capacity: 76 l (gasoline with an octane rating of 95, i.e. AI-95, or aviation gasoline 100LL)
- Engine: Rotax 912 iS (injection, air-water cooled, 4 cylinders, 100 hp / 75 kW)
- Propeller: three-blade, made of composite materials
Flight performance
- Max. speed: 176 km / h
- Range: 791 km
- Take-off take-off (on land / on water): 220 m / 280 m
- Landing mileage (on land / on water): 160 m / 260 m
Avionics
- GPS receiver
- VHF radio
- Mode C Responder
History
In 2004, the US Federal Aviation Administration introduced a new class of light sports aircraft - the LSA (Light-sport aircraft). This gave impetus to the development of a number of aircraft of this type both in the United States and abroad. One such company was ICON Aircraft, founded by former military pilot Kirk Hawkins and engineer Steen Strand.
In 2007-2008, the first prototype ICON A5 was developed, equipped with a temporary version of the cab. The official presentation took place on June 11, 2008, and the first flight he made in July 2008.
From 2008 to 2014, two prototypes made more than 700 test flights. The first production model was presented to the public and made its first flight on July 27, 2014 at the EAA AirVenture Oshkosh airshow ( Oshkosh , Wisconsin ).
The first production aircraft were ready in May 2015, but were not delivered to customers until June 11, 2015, when the FAA audit process was completed [10] . On July 20, 2015, the first production A5 was donated to EAA Young Eagles [11] .
In June 2015, the company announced that it had received pre-orders for 1250 aircraft [12] .
In May 2016, it was announced that the production of aircraft will be suspended in order to optimize the production process, a significant part of the employees will be dismissed. Instead of the planned 175 aircraft, only 20 will be produced in 2016. Optimization will allow for the deployment of larger-scale production starting in 2017 [13] .
In October 2017, the company announced a significant increase in prices - from 30% to 50%, depending on the configuration. The cost of the base model is now 269,000 US dollars, and the models in the maximum configuration - 389,000 US dollars. This is significantly more than the price of $ 139,000 indicated at the beginning of production (in 2008) [14] .
In August 2019, the company announced a reduction in production personnel by 40% due to insufficient demand [15] .
Incidents
| date | Board number | A place | Victims / on board | Short description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 08, 2017 | N184BA | Vacaville , California, USA | 2/2 | In low-level flight over the lake, the pilot directed the plane into a dead end canyon (probably confusing it with another canyon leading to open water). When trying to turn 180 degrees at low altitude, the plane collided with the ground [16] . |
| November 7, 2017 | N922BA | Holiday , Florida, USA | 1/1 | Famous American baseball player Roy Halliday crashed in the Gulf of Mexico. According to the results of the investigation, narcotic substances were found in the pilot’s body [17] . |
Rewards
An innovative approach to aircraft design brought the model a number of awards immediately after the appearance of the first pre-production prototype.
- 2008 Popular Science Top 100 Innovations of the Year [18]
- 2009 IDEA / BusinessWeek Design Award - winner in the Transport category [19]
- 2009 ID Annual Design Review [20] [21]
- 2009 IDSA International Design Excellence Award - Gold in the Transport nomination [22]
- 2009 IDSA International Design Excellence Award - Audience Choice [23]
- 2009 Gold Spark Design Award [24]
- 2010 Wallpaper * “An invention of the year that improves our lives” - jury prize [25]
- 2010 Red dot - winner in the Design nomination [26]
In Culture
- ICON A5 is the first aircraft available to the player in the computer game Microsoft Flight
- ICON A5 is visible in one of the scenes of the movie “ Knight of the Day ” [27]
Notes
- ↑ ICON A5 Prototype Flies . ICON Aircraft (July 15, 2008). Archived July 19, 2008.
- ↑ Buy A5 . ICON Aircraft. Date of treatment October 2, 2015.
- ↑ Bergqvist, Pia Icon A5 First Delivery Slated for AirVenture 2015 . AVweb (June 18, 2015). Date of treatment June 23, 2015.
- ↑ Light-Sport Aircraft
- ↑ http://easa.europa.eu/system/files/dfu/agency-measures-docs-certification-specifications-CS-LSA-CS-LSA---Initial-Issue.pdf
- ↑ 1 2 A plane that never goes into a tailspin
- ↑ The Icon A5 Is the Closest Thing to a Flying Car You Can Buy Today - Bloomberg Business
- ↑ Aircraft Specifications, verified January 1, 2016
- ↑ A5 Brochure
- ↑ Niles, Russ ICON Flies First Customer Aircraft . AVweb . Date of treatment May 18, 2015.
- ↑ Trimble, Stephen . Icon delivers safe, easy A5 seaplane after long development phase , Flightglobal.com (July 22, 2015). Date of treatment July 30, 2015.
- ↑ Grady, Mary FAA Okays Icon Production . AVweb (June 17, 2015). Date of treatment June 20, 2015.
- ↑ The Reporer - ICON slows production rate to improve manufacturing
- ↑ AV Web: Icon A5 Prices Rise
- ↑ AOPA: Icon Slashes Production
- ↑ Aviation Safety Network
- ↑ Report on aviation-safety.net
- ↑ Icon A5: A seaplane for beginners . Popular Science (December 8, 2008). Date of treatment November 15, 2011.
- ↑ Walters, Helen . IDEA 2009: Designing a Better World , BusinessWeek (July 29, 2009). Date of treatment November 28, 2010.
- ↑ Annual Design Review 2009 . ID (2009). Archived July 6, 2009.
- ↑ ICON Receives Prestigious Design Awards . ICON Aircraft (2009). Archived January 3, 2010.
- ↑ 5 Great Transportation Awards . BusinessWeek (2009). Date of treatment November 16, 2011.
- ↑ A Year of IDEAs: 2009 . IDSA.org (2009). Date of treatment November 16, 2011. Archived July 7, 2011.
- ↑ Spark Award Winners . Spark Awards (2009). Date of treatment November 16, 2011. Archived November 13, 2011.
- ↑ 11.4 Icon A5 aircraft by Icon . Wallpaper * (2010). Date of treatment November 16, 2011. Archived on April 14, 2012.
- ↑ ICON A5 Amphibisches Sportflugzeug mit faltbaren Flügeln unopened (link not available) . Red Dot (2010). Date of treatment November 16, 2011. Archived on September 10, 2012.
- ↑ Knight and Day - The Internet Movie Plane Database