The Monnett Monerai is a sailplane that was developed in the United States in the late 1970s for homebuilding. It is a conventional pod-and-boom design with a V-tail and a mid-mounted cantilever wing of constant chord.
| Monerai | |
|---|---|
 Monerai S | |
| General information | |
| Type | Sailplane |
| National origin | United States |
| Manufacturer | Monnett Experimental Aircraft |
| Designer | |
| Number built | 100 by January 1984 from 375 kits sold |
| History | |
| Introduction date | 1978 |
| First flight | 1978 |
The kit assembles in approximately 600 hours. It has bonded wing skins and incorporates 90° flaps for glide path control. The pod-and-boom fuselage consists of a welded steel tube truss encased in a fiberglass shell, with an aluminum tube for the tailboom. A spar fitting modification was released in 1983.[1]
A powered version was designed as the Monerai P with an engine mounted on a pylon above the wings. A Sachs Rotary Engine was chosen for the prototype.[2] A version with extended wing tips is also available (Monerai Max) which increases the span to 12 m (39 ft) and raises the glide ratio from 28:1 to more than 30:1.[3]
The powered Monerai P and the unpowered Monerai S versions are identical structurally.
Variants
edit- Monerai S
- unpowered glider
- Monerai P
- powered glider equipped with the 22 hp (16 kW) Zenoah G-25 or the 25 hp (19 kW) KFM 107 engine.[3]
- Monerai Max
- Monerai P version with extended wing tips[3]
Aircraft on display
edit- US Southwest Soaring Museum[4]
- Serial Number 22 on display at the New England Air Museum, Bradley International Airport, Windsor Locks, CT[5]
- S/N 323, Museum of Flying, Santa Monica Airport, CA
Specifications (Monerai S)
editGeneral characteristics
- Crew: One pilot
- Length: 19 ft 7 in (5.97 m)
- Wingspan: 36 ft 0 in (10.97 m)
- Height: 4 ft 4 in (1.32 m)
- Wing area: 78 sq ft (7.25 m2)
- Aspect ratio: 16.6:1
- Empty weight: 220 lb (100 kg)
- Gross weight: 450 lb (204 kg)
Performance
- Maximum speed: 120 mph (193 km/h, 100 kn)
- Maximum glide ratio: 28:1 at 60mph
- Rate of sink: 167 ft/min (0.85 m/s) at 55 mph: 167
References
edit- ^ Moll, Nigel; Comstock, Bryan (May 1983). "Monerai Service Bulletin". Reporting Points. Flying. Vol. 110, no. 5. Ziff Davis. p. 12. ISSN 0015-4806. Retrieved 15 August 2016 – via Google Books.
- ^ John Monnett (Oct 1977). "Try a new flavor... the Monerai". Sport Aviation.
- ^ a b c Said, Bob: 1983 Sailplane Directory, Soaring Magazine, page 123. Soaring Society of America, November 1983. USPS 499-920
- ^ US Southwest Soaring Museum (2010). "Sailplanes, Hang Gliders & Motor Gliders". Retrieved 26 May 2011.
- ^ "New England Air Museum".
- Jane's All the World's Aircraft 1985-86. p. 756.
External links
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