Falconar Golden Hawk

Design and development

The Golden Hawk traces its lineage to the American Aerolights Falcon of 1983. After Falcon production ended, three companies produced versions of the design. Team Falcon restarted production in 1998 with their Falcon 2000, Falcon East produced one with their Peregrine Falcon and Falconar Avia produced one and termed their version of the design the Golden Hawk.

The design has a composite fuselage and strut-braced wings made from aluminium and covered in doped aircraft fabric. The tip rudders and canard are also fabric-covered. The main landing gear is equipped with hydraulic disk brakes. The aircraft can be disassembled in ten minutes for ground transportation on a trailer or for storage.

The canard surface controls pitch, while roll is via conventional ailerons. Yaw is controlled with wing-tip rudders. The aircraft is advertised as spin-proof.

The Golden Hawk has been well received. Reviewer Andre Cliche described it as "a fantastic-looking aircraft that has no equal to stimulate the public's interest. Because of its futuristic looks Hollywood has used it several times in movies."

Variants

American Aerolights Falcon

Initial production version, introduced in 1983. Production ended by about 1984.

Team Falcon Falcon 2000

Improved production version introduced in 1998. Features longer landing gear to accommodate a large diameter propeller.

Falcon East Peregrine Falcon

FAR 103 Ultralight Vehicles category single seater with a Rotax 447 powerplant of 40 hp (30 kW) and a glide ratio of 14:1.

Falconar ARV-1L Golden Hawk

Earlier production version, powered by a Hirth 2703 powerplant of 55 hp (41 kW) or other two-stroke engines of 50 to 60 hp (37 to 45 kW).

Falconar ARV-1K Golden Hawk

Current production version, powered by a Hirth 2703 powerplant of 55 hp (41 kW) or other two-stroke engines of 50 to 60 hp (37 to 45 kW).

Specifications (Golden Hawk)

Data from Cliche and Falconar Avia

General characteristics

Crew: one

Capacity: one passenger

Length: 14 ft 0 in (4.27 m)

Wingspan: 34 ft 0 in (10.36 m)

Wing area: 168 sq ft (15.6 m²) including canard

Empty weight: 500 lb (227 kg)

Gross weight: 990 lb (449 kg)

Fuel capacity: 9 US gallons (34 litres)

Powerplant: 1 × Hirth 2703 twin cylinder, two-stroke aircraft engine, 55 hp (41 kW)

Performance

Maximum speed: 130 mph (209 km/h; 113 kn)

Cruise speed: 100 mph (161 km/h; 87 kn)

Stall speed: 40 mph (64 km/h; 35 kn)

Never exceed speed: 130 mph (209 km/h; 113 kn)

Range: 200 mi (174 nmi; 322 km)

Rate of climb: 800 ft/min (4.1 m/s)