Airbike

A short flight "around the patch" in a Rotax 40 powered Airbike.

[@douglasmaclean5836]

awesome video. thanks for posting ... that planes looks like a ton of fun !

[@larrygrisham9885]

Awesome!! That was a wonderful ride. Almost like I was at the controls . Thanks for the great ride.😃

[@garrykennedy5484]

I love the Airbike!!! I want one if I ever get to retire!!!!!!! Also love how you did the preflight walk around just like we do with our Hang Gliders. Checking every bolt, nut, and cable. Most folks don't show this, but it's PARAMOUNT for a successful flight and future ones. I also LOVE that P-51 style cowling and nose cone!!!!LOL Good on ya mate as they say,,,,,,, somewhere.

[@buddyhutchins3782]

Down under...

[@killtheorangeclown7883]

I really enjoyed your flight..!!.. Thanks for sharing!!

[@ernieyoutube9822]

Always loved the air bike. Im goin to have one one day. Thank you much for your video. Stay safe.

[@Chris_at_Home]

Nice airplane. I’ll say one thing, if you ever have an engine failure you have plenty of flat places to land.

[@terrycroup3405]

That is simply beautiful.

[@Itchy1958]

Thanks for the ride Pop. Have fun.

[@ML80085]

Cool video!! Soundtrack, Sepia and above all the flying. Thanks

[@drmichaelshea]

That looks like so much fun! I do miss flying, but as it says in Ecclesiastes, “There is time to every purpose under the heaven.”

[@Chris_at_Home]

I had a small two seater when I was young and had more money than sense. Funny you mention God because when I sold the plane is about the time I started going to church regularly. This was back in the 1980s when you could buy a decent plane for under ten grand.

[@fakenews8464]

It’s time

[@drmichaelshea]

@@fakenews8464 No, it WAS time (for me, anyway).

[@Farweasel]

This Ecclesiastes bloke - was he a Pilot? I doubt it ......... So what would he know about it.

[@roberthouston9657]

@@Farweasel haters gonna hate. What's wrong with you that you have to do that?

[@45035]

Outstanding shipmate. Press on. USS Kitty Hawk CV-63. Jan 1980 to July 1983. Aviator for life.

[@Texas_Made6990]

You have me smiling ear to ear. I'm saving rt now for mine. And this made me even more antsy lol

[@FilosophicalPharmer]

You too?!?!!!!! lol

[@jesusantoniososaherrera2217]

Really cool vehicle!! Cheers!!

[@januszpolski4228]

Great video and plane!

[@robertlafnear9115]

YEH..... I've got a Legal Eagle WB ( 5" wider than the plans ) in the beginning build stages the jig and it sure looks a lot like this..... This has to be the most fun to fly ever !..... Not sure if I'll ever finish mine but if I watch you video a bit more I am sure this will give me the push to finish....* thinking about an Hirth F23 for mine AND a BRS . Thank You for posting. FLY SAFE .😁 Note; some guy flew one these from N.Cal. ? to the ultralight meet in AZ. a while back🥵

[@direktorpresident]

A high tech Demoiselle! Fantastic, thanks

[@jimmielittle877]

I like your style very smooth flyer and an awesome air plane too 🌻

[@ronaldfranck6960]

Thank you. Yes, it's been a 20 year love affair with the Airbike. A very honest, forgiving design.

[@psjasker]

And that, my friends, is a thorough pre-flight inspection. Love the music

[@Paiadakine]

Love the dramatic beginning.

[@stanpeade6674]

Brilliant! "Chocks away!" Proper "flying by the seat of the pants." Nice bit of circuit planning, too. Any chance of you posting some more flights, please?🤔

[@joemclaughlin995]

Class looking machine! Definitely a minimalist's dream.

[@fractuss]

This is a true flying machine right here.

[@etarheel1]

Beautiful flight and beautiful production/editing skills!

[@ronaldfranck6960]

Thank you!

[@FilosophicalPharmer]

Thanks for carrying me along as a passenger this morning. To show my thanks, i won't call the FAA and tell them you busted part 103... 👍🏼

[@vincestapleton703]

Those Magnificent Men and their flying Machines! Very Intrepid!👍🏻

[@chuckcawthon3370]

Well Done Sir. I love Ultralights.

[@carlorachel]

Ronald, God gave you wings to converse with angels. Remember from where the Glory comes while you are up there. Godspeed, brother.

[@ajdup]

Awesome video.

[@13699111]

Great video thank you for posting it

[@spoofyoriginal]

Ive had a similar idea ^^ cool to see a version of a flybike ^^ "microplane"

[@ibgeorgeb]

Wow! Fantastic. 👌🏾

[@terrallputnam7979]

This is what flying was like during the really early days of flight.

[@claudiogucci2019]

Bellissimo ! Complimenti !!!!

[@stevensonDonnie]

Nice pre flight. Thorough.

[@edwilloughby8976]

If that's a true airbike, the kit was manufactured by TEAM IN TENNESSEE several years ago. I was friendd with a man who built severzl minimaxes and finally one airbike that I took up knce. Very nice flier. Good video.

[@ronaldfranck6960]

It is a "true airbike" but in this case it was not a kit. Within our EAA chapter we formed a group of nine builders who collectively wanted to each build our own Airbike from scratch. Initially Wayne Ison balked at the idea of selling plans only. After lengthly negotiations and setteling on terms Wayne agreed to issue each, individual builder a license to construct one airframe. Each builder purchased the plans and paid their licensing fee and in turn was given a complete set of plans including plans for all the weldments. Anyone buying the kit version of the Airbike from T.E.A.M. were not privy to the propriatairy weldment drawings as the kit included a fully welded fuselage, tail feathers and landing gear legs.

[@DoItAllGarage]

Appreciate the video. Thank you!

[@90FF1]

Curious what the wing loading is on your cool little bike. Enjoyed the video.

[@LeeKobe1]

Seriously looking at getting one of these. Have my PPL but GA is just too much expense and FAA requirements.

[@Heather22056]

Thanks for the video.

[@mikemaxwell2591]

Just happened to run into your video, nice job, good on no music when in the air as we all like the song of the engine purring.

[@grahamwhittle6817]

Wow great little aeroplane ✈️

[@exb.r.buckeyeman845]

I would definitely fold my trousers, pants, under my socks. You don’t want a Hornet or Wasp to get forced up your leg.

[@balloney2175]

Cool project to dream about.

[@stranraerwal]

interesting and funny music pieces for an interesting, funny plane.

[@divyajnana]

fun video of a fun plane, thanks.

[@darrellroeters4951]

Looks very flyable with no wind.

[@toddmaley2031]

Nice landing, i thought those airbikes were squirrely, he kept it stable

[@Intersimonedennis2]

Scott Joplin, excellent choice !

[@edsal26]

A really enjoyable video. It’s the $4 bolts that hold the wing on that I worry about. I’m the military they call them the” Jesus knot”

[@ronaldfranck6960]

I think the spar bolts are the same size as the bolts that keep the wings on an Aeronca Champ.

[@rule1dontgosplat]

I visited TEAM aircraft and met wayne ison back when this was in development. I built the Max103 and sold it before flying it. It was so much fun. I have a copy of their old promo tape somewhere. I tried to put it on youtube but they blocked it because of the music.

[@chetmyers7041]

Great demo of "the simplicity of flight." Love the un-cluttered instrument panel. Who needs a compass or altimeter if you have a smartphone onboard?

[@RoadRunnerLaser]

Because smartphones are inherently unreliable. A mechanical compass or an altimeter is far less likely to fail in flight. A mechanical altimeter can be properly set to the regional air-pressure setting. Mechanical instruments don’t tend to overheat, run out of batteries, or crash because the OS is a piece of crap (like the majority of modern software). I use “moving map” software in my cockpit but I also fly with a paper-chart on my knee because not only is it required by law, it means that when my tablet inevitably fails, I can still navigate.

[@MaddConnekRecordz]

@@RoadRunnerLaser well said. I intend on installing both. relying heavily on old school instrumentation.

[@ronaldfranck6960]

My Grand Rapids EIS has has a built-in altimeter and up between the wings, attached to the skylight is a magnetic compass. I sometimes carry a small, handheld Garmin GPS, but that's mainly to check groundspeed. The Airbike is pretty much a ground reference machine.

[@chetmyers7041]

@Ben Chuft What agency is issueing the regulation that is violated? Which regulation? This is not a cellphone aboard a commercial flight. My cellular user agreement does not say the phone must remain on the ground.

[@FilosophicalPharmer]

Jimmy Doolittle just rolled over in his grave...

[@arthurwagar88]

Thanks for sharing. Going to forward to a friend or two.

[@Ronbc000]

Beautifully maintained fun aircraft. Ronald, would you ever consider flying your Airbike without a carburettor air filter? With regular engine maintenance have you ever experienced problems with filter element blockage? Thanks for your help. 👍

[@ronaldfranck6960]

I wouldn't alter the air filter. Rotax designed it for the purpose of engine longivity. Unlike a paper element it is the type of air cleaner that Rotax calls "rechargable", meaning it can be cleaned and re-oiled. Engine life could be shortened by removing the filter and inducting dust into the intake.

[@Ronbc000]

@@ronaldfranck6960 Hi Ronald. In addition, no air filter increases risk of carburettor fire at the intake. There are YT members that are flying an Airbike with filter removed, I pointed out the hazards, They shot me down as to be expected. To each his own. Thanks. 👍

[@KrustyKlown]

@@Ronbc000 Also, I would point out the risk of ingesting a large rock during takeoff... which can cause immediate piston and ring breakage (engine failure). I've raced go-karts for decades, with and without air filters .. and have experienced engine damage from rocks / debris. For ONLY this reason I run large over sized air filters, and clean it as often as possible. Extending the service hours of the engine is a low level secondary concern relative to engine failure. Also, based on my experiences, ingesting a rock occurs FAR MORE often than an engine fire from fuel spitting out the carb .. never had that happen, but have lost several engines to rocks.

[@itoibo4208]

running without an air filter sounds like riding a bike without glasses. You could do it, but why, because you like rocks in your face?

[@miguelsuarez8010]

I'll put itin my wish list for christmas...

[@ibnewton8951]

Opening sequence (hangar door) cracked me up! 😅

[@jpeterman57]

I miss my airbike.

[@Peckerwood-502]

One day…. That looks like fun.

[@worldclassish]

Home built experimental or ultra light are lots of fun. Most have to have mode c in my area but not ultra lights. Looks like your not using a radio either. That's seat of the pants flying.

[@davidalan9513]

I want one!

[@cassbiz]

Really cool.

[@stevegiboney4493]

She flys good!

[@ronaldfranck6960]

YES she does!!!!

[@MrAaa9271]

awesome.....

[@pjoe1950]

Nice video. Which Rotax is that? Also when I posted my video of my flight star one comment was " What was the point of this you did not go anywhere." I told him that if I had to explain it then he would never understand that the joy is just being up in the air.

[@ronaldfranck6960]

Rotax 447 @40hp.

[@Joeak74]

VERY COOL!

[@islesanctum833]

Can these be fitted with pontoons ? Approximate price?

[@Specialedoperations]

Thank you for information

[@davidspiller413]

lovely, i miss flying small aircraft since i flunked my medical due to a stroke last Sep 11

[@ronaldfranck6960]

Sorry to hear of your loss of medical. Flying is truly an wonderful expression of freedom. Wishing you a speedy recovery and opportunities to return to blue skies.

[@oscarmedina1303]

If you are in the U.S., you should consider flying under FAR103. No medical necessary.

[@SPUDWRENCH]

How do you manually open or close THAT garage door? Wow!

[@erinbiggers3454]

What's a good cruising speed that is gentle to the motor and not falling out of the sky when the wind changes

[@ronaldfranck6960]

50 to 60 mph is where I normally cruise. My Rotax 447 can be run 5400 to 6100 rpm depending on how fast you want to go or how conservative you are with fuel. The Airbike is not a speed demon by any measure unless you're comparing it to a powered parachute, lol. I'm not sure by what you mean by wind changes. Thermals? Gusts? or an actual sudden change in direction? Choose your weather wisely, the Airbike is lightly loaded. If you are at all concerned about loosing inertia turning downwind of the air currents it's always good to carry a little extra speed and make gentle, shallow turns. Turning into the wind has not been a problem. After 20 years of flying my airbike it becomes kind of a zen thing, you become one with the machine.

[@martinlim6204]

Great landing

[@ronaldfranck6960]

Thanks. With every landing I always try to make it my best to date, and after 20 years I find I'm always learning new things.

[@joeblowjohnny2297]

Airbike : I came here thinking this man invented an airborne pedal bike ? Lmao 🤣 🤣 🤣 And again : nothing beat HP ! LMAO 🤣 🤣 🤣

[@ronaldfranck6960]

Designer Wayne Ison and his manufacturing team at Tennessee Engineering and Manufacturing (T.E.A.M.) came up with the name "AIRBIKE". Maybe "AIRCYCLE" would have been more descriptive.

[@christopherslane7830]

Well, that was informative.

[@user-pr5up3zh4f]

Отличный самолёт 👍👍👍 блин надо себе такой собрать. Но вообще-то вертолёт лучше даже на работу можно летать 😁😁😁 но трудоёмкость больше. 🤔🤔🤔

[@billseay6399]

Hey Thanks what types of price did cost you

[@markmark2080]

"If you wanna be a bird... it won't take much... to get you up there..." couldn't help thinking of that song...nice 'bike'...What area is that, West Texas, Kansas...?

[@ronaldfranck6960]

Western Illinois, the land of felonious Governors.

[@cowboy6591]

SWEET !!

[@michaelstarr5861]

Whatever you do, don't head up wind!

[@erikleekramer8354]

Where is the airport or what is the airport ID, I may develop it for XPLANE Flight Sim, I am working on Illinois, looks like a nice place to soar. Thanks and great video. The AirBike is so sweet.

[@hughsmith7850]

Pretty Cool

[@brucea.overstreet9742]

Where can I get one!! Nice!

[@someoneelse7629]

If we had the FAR103 rules here, I would definitely try to get an Airbike or similar. I don't need more plane that that, in fact I bet you feel the flying more the less plane you have

[@user-qf1uz1cp1slava]

Супер!!!

[@user-zg1un5tr9k]

Нам не грозит!

[@donc9751]

Very cool airplane! Nice area to fly, lots of places to set it down if any engine trouble should occur, almost anywhere! I notice it appears you are flying just after sunup and am guessing that's to avoid the hot air thermals and turbulence later in the day? I noticed during preflight the wing has a little bit of movement in it when lifting one side then the other. How does it handle turbulence later in the day or do you flu mid day at all? PS: I really enjoyed the editing and music and cool old fashioned effects!!

[@ronaldfranck6960]

Although smooth air is much preferred for a comfortable flight I do enjoy attempting to "hook a thermal" like the glider guys. I throttle back to where it will just barely maintain altitude and then go thermal hunting just to see if it can climb in lift. On a really rough mid-day flight I can see 900 feet per minute climb, but when you pop out the other side you can lose it just as quickly. About the only thing that keeps me on the ground are strong winds. Had only one unplanned landing in 20 years of operation. Climbed too steeply on takeoff and the carb float didin't like that attitude. Cut off my fuel in short order. Luckly, the runway was right below me so a steep, diving turn to keep up airspeed put me right back down on the runway. One pull on the starter rope and I was back airbourne in seconds. I pay very close attention to altitude, airspeed , fuel flow and the engine monitor. Seems to be the right combination to keeping trouble away.

[@donc9751]

@@ronaldfranck6960 Wow very interesting info!!! Thank you for your reply! That really interested me when you mentioned you enjoy trying to hook a Thermal like the glider guys do! Pretty brave in my book! I don't have or ever have flown in an ultralight airplane, but have been very interested in flying them as far back as I can remember! I still would love to try it and learn to fly them. I say brave because although the ultralight are pretty well put together, I used to fly paragliders and I've been in some pretty good thermals, at least 1 I know my variometer said I was going up at over 900 feet a minute and they could get pretty hairy sometimes, especially when you fall out of the top of it! So it made me wonder how well a little plane like yours would handle that, and it seems to handle them just fine. I'm impressed you've been flying for so many years, 20 years is a long time in any body's book! That 1 engine stoppage you had, naturally the engine has to quit on you at just the worst moment possible! But then had it not been fir the steep angle of attack you put into it, that caused it to happen, but I'm glad you were able to get the nose down steep enough and had enough altitude to enable you to get out of it without becoming a lawn dart after a stall! I bet that was an exciting ride, and maybe even a bit fun, but then I probably would have has to change my shorts after that happened if I was flying 1 of them. I'm not a young guy any more and quit flying paragliders many years ago after a fairly bad accident. I didn't stop right after that though. I went right back to flying them after about 3 months after I'd healed up enough. But eventually I quit. Flying ultralight has always appealed to me and something like that right now seems like it would be a really fun way to fly, I just don't want to have to deal with Amy more accidents. But I think it's fantastic you get to scratch that itch to fly and hope you have many more safe years of flying ahead of you! Thanks again for your reply, I love hearing about it!

[@L2FlyMN]

I wanted to fly my PPC cross country, but its to slow, & affected badly by thermals that throw you around.

[@markmark2080]

@@ronaldfranck6960 Good information, thanks

[@timtravasos2742]

Seems like a biplane wing design would be more compact.

[@tuberhead]

Like it says in some book, 'Sometimes you're doing something, othertimes you're doing something else.'

[@chrisphillips4859]

That's like the grandpa of all airplanes.

[@bentrider]

Wonder why they called it an Airbike. I was expecting to see pedals.

[@HansAllrad]

Super...

[@456Broscowagner]

Nice ....showww...

[@jonathansimmonds5784]

I'd want a headrest.

[@shawnkennedy6866]

Cool.😊

[@butziporsche8646]

"They go uppity up up" ♫ ♪ ♬

[@jairoperalta751]

Esto si es volar......

[@juliomarkutin6864]

congratulations, it is possible to get the plans of this model, thanks and regards

[@cndbrn7975]

Awesome! The cost of these aircraft start at $2800+ U.S.?

[@ronaldfranck6960]

Maybe the raw materials if you build from plans, tubing and wood, but not much else. I built mine from plans 20 years ago and that investment came to around $7500.00 USD.

[@dmitriykhudoleyev7308]

@@ronaldfranck6960 That's funny, new PPG motor cost around 6-7K$ and paraglider itself around 4K$. :(

[@barrykelly2722]

Interesting for sure. Not sure if it is practical unless it has speeds that exceed a Sunday afternoon drive in an 81 Plymouth Reliant K-car. Imagine it was conservative flying for the video. The build must have been fun. Lots of intelligence required that I do not have. Nice scenery.

[@brianfeuhtinger3267]

The music is Perfect., BTW There's a Digital Flight sim model of this that's Compatible with MSFS 2020.

[@ronaldfranck6960]

Thanks. If only my desktop was powerful enough to run MSFS2020!

[@fernandoferraz3527]

Where can I find it? I want to download it :)

[@leoncostley4370]

Tennessee team aircraft I ordered a kit build it took two years I put a 80 horsepower 2 cylinder Suzuki engine on it with the three bladed 63inch carbon prop ,would fly 80 mph , lifetime dream and a lot of fun in Central Florida Year 1999..

[@christophernichols114]

You had me on board until you said Florida

[@leoncostley4370]

Just that lake county Florida had five airports they help me with my flying lessons... The last being with instructor let me fly a j3 Piper Cub to learn how to land a tail dragger. . After applying mine around Florida for a year I put on a small trailer pull it to Tioga county Pennsylvania .. made my vacation ".. then back to Florida.. for more fun lying around the club that I was a member of near the Orange county lake county line. until the world trade center was attacked.. at that time FAA grounded all small planes.. so I spent the time fine tuning to airlarons making some hands-free trim tabs . Hope to start flying again.. unfortunately October 2001 I took it up and I crashed it. From 800 ft up straight down and to about four foot of water.. trauma hospital 8 weeks... Ouch " distractions lead to pilot-arr ( PreFlight check )..

[@dkdanis1340]

How does it handle turbulence compared to some other ultralights

[@ronaldfranck6960]

You have me at a disadvantage in answering your inquiry as my only experience is limited to the Airbike and no other. That said, it can be a bit of a rough ride in strong lift, but at the same time it you can make good of the experience by reducing power and attempt to ride a thermal or two. It will never match the efficency of a glider but one can play a bit and pretend.

[@dkdanis1340]

@@ronaldfranck6960 yeah let's i want to fly mid day clear sky, slight wind. Is it smooth?

[@rossr6616]

how much runway does that need?

[@ronaldfranck6960]

Not much. That may seem like a strange reply but there are so many considerations. Engine power output, pilot weight, headwinds at the surface, runway slope, asphalt vs. grass, pilot technique. air temprature, fuel on board. If I have 4000 feet available I'll use the entire runway. Have I taken off in 150 feet? Landed in 200 feet? Yes to both.

[@Mc-pp4vc]

Looks like a blast!! Is this Wisconsin?

[@ronaldfranck6960]

Illinois, land of high taxes and criminal governors.