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Pilatus PC-11
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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| Type designation | Pilatus B-4 |
| Competition class | Club |
| Number built | - |
| Crew | 1 |
| Length | 6.57 m (21 ft 8 in) |
| Height | 1.57 m (5 ft 2 in) |
| Cockpit width | - |
| Cockpit height | - |
| Wingspan | 15 m (49 ft 6 in) |
| Wing area | 14 m² (151 ft²) |
| Aspect ratio | 16 |
| Empty mass | ca. 230 kg (508 lb) |
| Water ballast | kg |
| Maximum mass | 350 kg (773 lb) |
| Wing loading | 23–25 kg/m² (4.7–5.1 lb/ft²) |
| Maximum speed | 130 knots (240 km/h, 150 mph) |
| Rough air speed | - |
| Maneuver speed | - |
| Minimum sink rate | ca. 0.63 m/s (126 ft/min) |
| Glide ratio | ca. 35:1 |
The Pilatus PC-11 (also known as the Pilatus B-4) is an all-metal intermediate sailplane built by Pilatus Aircraft of Switzerland.
The PC-11 is designed to Standard Class specifications, which means that it has a 15 metre wingspan and no flaps. Airbrakes are provided on the top surface of each wing for glidepath control. Construction is aluminium, with foam ribs in the mainplane, fin and tailplane.
The design of this glider originated in the 1960s, when the company Firma Rheintalwerke G. Basten (from which the "B" in the original designation is derived) manufactured the first two prototypes. The first flight of the first prototype took place on 7 November 1966. However, no series production was started.
In 1972 Pilatus bought the manufacturing licence for the B-4 and renamed it the PC-11. In the spring of the same year the first production example (numbered HB-1100) undertook its first flight.
A total of 322 PC-11s of all versions were built by Pilatus until the license to manufacture the craft was sold to Nippi Aircraft of Japan, who only built 11 examples, including a two-seater.
Subsequently, in 1994, EWMS Technomanagement GmbH bought the rights to produce and service the PC-11. This company also specializes in renovating and upgrading older PC-11 craft. In addition, it manufactures a motorized PC-11.
While the original B-4/PC-11 was permitted do a number of aerobatic maneuvers, it was not permitted to do inverted loops or flick/snap/quick maneuvers. Consequently, the PC-11 A was developed, which was permitted to perform inverted loops and was also able to handle higher G-forces. In 1975 the PC-11 AF version was released, which had full aerobatic capabilities. The PC-11 was available with either fixed or retractable landing gear.
The changes in construction from PC-11 through A and AF variants were to add extra ribs through the fuselage section (increasing torsional rigidity), and to modify the control column stops giving greater control surface deflection.
Related development:
Comparable aircraft: Start & Flug Salto
Designation sequence: P-2 - P-3 - PC-6 - PC-7 - PC-9 - PC-11 - PC-12 - PC-21
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