23January 2018

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trike unit for attachment to your own choice of flex-wing. (There’ll be a flight test of the Snake in next month’s MF – Ed.)

They may be light, but they are designed to the German UL120 specification and are awaiting final approval from the German authorities for the Mini-fox. The French have already approved the design.

The UL120 specification requires that the struc-ture has been tested to +4/-2g, and quality control in the factory meets those requirements for two-seat microlights which copy across to their lightweight siblings.

When I arrived at Sutton Meadows on a cool, breezy day, the Minifox fuselage was sitting outside awaiting its wings, and this meant that I could get a feel for how easy it was to rig. The individual wing panels are amazingly light, and easy to handle on your own, even in a reasonable breeze.

The fuselage on its own sits naturally on its tail, and it’s perfectly possible to rig the wings like this in light winds, but in stronger winds it’s a good idea to put sufficient weight on the cockpit floor to get the nosewheel on the ground.

Attaching the wings to the fuselage is also very straightforward: attach the inboard ends of the struts

first, then the inboard ends of the wings, then lift the wing and attach the twin struts with more bolts. Finally, attach the aileron horns to the pushrods with more bolts.

All 10 attachments use commercial-grade met-ric bolts with stiffnuts. Those of us brought up on two-seat microlights are more used to seeing aircraft-quality fasteners, but in truth these are very lightly loaded and in double shear, so in-flight failure seems pretty improbable.

Thankfully there’s an optional €800 attachment which will allow you to swing the wings back so that the leading edges go over the top of the tail surfaces and the struts remain attached to the fuselage.

The cool video in the current eMF shows you how neat and easy it is to handle. It also includes push-pins to replace the nuts and bolts.

The lower lift struts can remain attached with the folding-wing option; they simply rotate back along the boom tube to make moving the aircraft around by hand a bit easier. You can of course remove them if you need to, but it’s not necessary.

With the wings rigged, it’s time to stand back and take a look.

And here we need stereoscopic vision, because the

Minifox is likely to be of interest to two completely different markets.

To the owner of a two-seat microlight who is find-ing that they can’t justify the overheads when com-pared with the low hours in their logbook, and who fancies something very simple that they can potter about the airfield in on summer evenings, the Mini-fox looks like what it is – a stripped-down version of the Firefox with remarkably tiny wheels.

The forward fuselage looks like a sort of steel tube cobweb, though the tail boom and flying surfaces look comfortingly familiar. The engine looks insub-stantial by comparison with the beefy 912 or Jabiru we’ve got used to, but the controls all look much the same.

But Dave Broom expects more interest from the paramotor brigade who are looking to move up in the world, and to them the Minifox looks very cool and sophisticated. It has wheels, for a start, and flying surfaces that look like a “proper” aero plane.

You can sit in comfort for hours and hours, and the cruise speed of 60mph sounds so much more practical than the 30mph you’ve been used to.

The engine is a standard paramotor unit with a good reputation, inspiring confidence that you’ll be

MIcroLIGhTInG is about 40 years old, and today’s mainstream microlights are seven times heavier, 10 times more powerful, three times faster and carry twice as much payload for three times as long as the originals.

They have flown all the way round the world, and outperform their certificated brethren by a substan-tial margin.

But today there’s a mood afoot to get back to the old, simple days.

The BMAA has been very proactive in trying to re-duce the amount of interference, and there’s increas-ing interest among manufacturers to provide afford-able machines to make the most of the new market.

The latest entry in the fixed-wing sector is the Euro fly Minifox, and last month I visited UK agent Dave Broom to see – and try – his new baby.

Eurofly is a new name in the UK market, but that doesn’t mean it’s a new start-up, with all the risks that implies.

I was amazed to discover that Eurofly has been in the aviation business for 30 years. With the two-seat market fairly static, it sees a new opening for light-weight machines with minimal regulation; hence the Minifox, developed from the Firefox, and the Snake

Keep it simple, CupidDavid Bremner falls in love

with the back-to-basics

Eurofly Minifox

FLIGHT TEST Eurofly Minifox

The Minifox

will give you

huge amounts

of fun and

be simple to

operate and

maintain. And

it’s a brilliant

camera

platform

Above Empty weight 115kg, payload 115kg, 60mph cruise: meet the Minifox w

23January 201822 Microlight Flying

25January 2018

it’s a bit of a surprise that the ailerons and trim tab are not faired into their respective trailing edges, which looks a bit uncool. But on the other hand it’s a great deal simpler to manufacture.

To a two-seat microlight pilot the tricycle under-carriage looks very spindly; the main gear legs are high-tensile aluminium rods, the noseleg has a sin-gle tube instead of the more normal fork, and on the ends are wheels that look as if they’ve been taken off a baby buggy – plastic with foam tyres.

however, the main legs are similar to those on a rans, so I’ve no evidence to show the set-up is in any way inadequate. The mainwheels even sport brakes, complete with a parking lock.

If you want to operate off particularly rough sur-faces, wider wheels are available as an option, but I’d be happy to stick with these to start with.

controls are conventional and pushrod-operated throughout, apart from the rudder, which is cable-operated. They’ve used proper rose joints throughout so that friction is minimal.

In fact, the whole airframe, despite its tiny size, gives off a sense of quality in the detail: the anodised aluminium, the powder-coated frame, the PX5 cover-ing – all telling you that this is built by someone who knows aviation and aircraft.

Italy has more or less sewn up the market for foot-launch motors, and the cisco BullMax engine fitted here is a well tried unit. It’s a 230cc single-cylinder two-stroke developing 33hp and turning a helix 130 two-bladed composite propeller through a 2.62:1 poly V-belt reduction drive. There’s an 18 litre petrol tank behind the pilot feeding the Walbro diaphragm carburettor. So far, so standard.

With the walk round complete, it was time to try it on for size, and the first thing you notice is the ease of access. Almost all enclosed three-axis microlights require a degree of flexibility, and getting into the Minifox should be pretty straightforward even if you are a bit stiff in the joints.

You need to gently press the nose down first, but

thereafter it’s easy enough to get your feet onto the rudder pedals. The demonstrator has a tiny wind-screen, which is optional. Without it, and with a paramotor instrument pack strapped to your knee, it would be fair to say that the Minifox is the ultimate flying armchair.

There are recoil and electric start options for the engine. G-cKIZ has the recoil start, and the cord runs through a pulley just behind the pilot’s head, making it possible – and safe – to start it from outside or when sitting in place. It started more or less first pull from cold for Dave, but I struggled a bit when it was warm until he politely suggested I turn on the ignition…

one expects a paramotor engine to make a con-siderable din, so I was very pleasantly surprised at the sophistication when it fired up. The vibration was minimal and the sound wasn’t nearly as stressful as I’d been expecting. In fact, judging from Dave’s preliminary warm-up flight, I doubt if anyone on the ground is going to get worked up about the noise.

It helps a great deal that you are travelling so much faster than a footlaunch, so you are out of hear-ing before it can get on peoples’ nerves.

If you’ve spent any time with a 912, the really good news is that you don’t have to warm the oil up – you just start up and go flying.

Taxiing is very straightforward, but it felt like a good idea to treat the little wheels with respect and take it fairly slowly. After all I’d said about the brakes, it was actually rather nice to use them for parking and for the engine run-up.

Flying the MinifoxThe first thing I was struck with after opening the throttle was the boot up the backside and the rapid transition from ground to air in around 80m at an indicated 40mph. It wasn’t what I was expecting with only 33hp on tap and getting on for 100kg in the cockpit.

It was a breezy day, and we’d had some doubts as to whether it would be suitable for a test flight, but we needn’t have worried. The controls were powerful and progressive, and I immediately felt at home with them. It wasn’t a day for making precise measure-ment, but the rate of climb gave a more than adequate safety margin.

The control forces are normal and it seemed posi-tively stable, so that even in the blustery conditions I was able to take my hands and feet off the controls for a long time. I found that it flew best with the trimmer set full aft to counteract my weight, and you barely needed rudder in the turns.

With about 1000ft between me and terra firma, I eased back the throttle and tried a stall. There was no clearly defined break, but at about 35mph the nose dropped, as did the left wing. controls remained effective throughout, and it was only necessary to release the back pressure on the stick to regain full control.

I also tried sideslips, and both stick and rudder

Above These photos from the factory show (top) the wing fold mechanism (similar to the SkyRanger system); and (below) the pushpin wing securing arrangement. Neither were fitted to the test machine

tend to self-centre, which is nice to know, though it’s not a particularly useful way of losing height, since there’s so little side area.

She settled nicely into a hands-off cruise at about 60mph indicated (it wasn’t meaningful to check these against the GPS) and I could settle back and enjoy the view.

The seat, though lightweight, is very comfort-able, and the rudder pedals were in a good spot for both Dave’s Dad Mick (5ft 8 in) and me (6ft 3 in). one thing I definitely lacked was a visor or goggles. I wear glasses which provided some protection and were fine in the Doodle Bug, but at 60mph they really weren’t up to the job in the Minifox.

The glide, at around 50mph, gave a reasonably slow rate of descent, although there was no point in taking measurements. At higher speeds, the sink rate increased dramatically.

FLIGHT TEST Eurofly Minifox

able to make it to the neighbouring county for lunch and back again in reasonable weather conditions, and possibly fit some baggage behind you as well.

So, whatever your perspective, how does the Mini-fox look?

The pusher configuration is relatively unfashion-able but gives the pilot an unparalleled view of the world, making it a superb camera platform with a better all-round view than pretty much any wheeled microlight and more elbow room than a footlaunch. It’s also quieter for the pilot than a tractor layout.

The forward fuselage is a powder-coated welded steel tube framework with the seat positioned just ahead of the wing leading edge. The twin wing struts aren’t parallel, which snags on the eye at first, but quickly becomes normal. The engine is mounted just below and behind the wing, and a 130mm-dia alu-minium tube carries the tail surfaces.

The wing construction will look completely famil-iar to anyone who has flown a Skyranger or rans, and the PX5 sailcloth covering is highly UV-resistant.

Italians are renowned for their design style, and

Above The individual wing panels are light and easy to handle, even in a reasonable breeze

BelowThe forward fuselage looks like a steel tube cobweb, though the tail boom and flying surfaces are reassuringly familiar

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25January 201824 Microlight Flying

The top speed was around 75mph as quoted, and is pretty much self-limiting, as it takes a very steep dive to get up to the quoted Vne of 80mph.

Landing, with the superlative view ahead and of the wheels, is absolutely straightforward. I ap-proached at 60mph and the speed had bled off to 50mph over the hedge. This gave plenty of spare con-trol during the landing itself, and I’m sure it would be possible to reduce the speeds with practice, though it would probably be a good idea to try and limit the loads on those wheels!

I taxied back to the hangars with a big silly grin on my face, and began to think who else might enjoy the experience.

Pros and consFirst of all, let’s take a look at the qualified microlight pilot wanting to downsize.

If you’ve been used to an enclosed two-seater like the Skyranger or Eurostar, the open cockpit may come as a bit of a shock, though I never felt at all insecure, and the simple handling and stability will quickly inspire confidence.

The 60mph cruise speed is a good deal more than many early microlights and will give you the potential for flyouts on a good many summer weekends.

Your opinion of the £17,000-19,000 price tag (de-pending on the euro exchange rate and whether you want a kit or ready-built) will depend entirely on your own circumstances.

For the paramotorist, this will mark a considerable step up in both investment and return. It’s an order of magnitude more capable than any footlaunch, and I’ve no doubt the novelty of a proper three-axis ma-chine which doesn’t involve significant muscle power or time to rig and fly will give very great pleasure and satisfaction.

Before taking the plunge, you’ll need to think carefully where and how it’s going to be kept. My per-sonal preference (based on my experience with the Escapade) would be for a trailer at home; no hanga-rage charges, easy maintenance and the ability to fly from anywhere. Dave is investigating sourcing a bespoke trailer for the Minifox, and I would be very tempted by that.

As for the Minifox itself, this is a very, very capable machine for the money. The empty weight of 115kg

Technical daTaVariant specified is UK-legal SSDR

Eurofly MinifoxManuFacTurErEurofly Srl, Via Brega, 36056 Tezze sul Brenta, Vicenza, Italy. Tel +39 0424 562381; info@euroflyulm.com; euroflyulm.com.

IMPOrTErAirplay Aircraft Ltd, Sutton Meadows Airfield, Sutton Gault, Ely, Cambs CB6 2BJ. Tel 07773 253454; info@airplayaircraft.co.uk; airplayaircraft.co.uk. Proprietor: David Broom.

SuMMarySingle-seat high-wing monoplane with conventional three-axis control. Wing has unswept leading and trailing edges. Pitch control by elevator on tail with separate trim tab; yaw control by fin-mounted rudder; roll control by ailerons. Strutted wing, profile n/a. Undercarriage has three wheels in nosewheel formation; solid mainwheel undercarriage machined from 7075 Ergal alloy. Nosewheel steering connected to aerodynamic controls. Cable-operated drum brakes on main wheels. Spaceframe fuselage constructed from Chromoly 4130 and corrosion proofed. Main airframe components manufactured from 6082 T6 aluminium. Engine mounted behind wing, driving pusher propeller.

ExTErnaL DIMEnSIOnS anD arEaSLength overall when rigged 6.1m. Height overall 1.8m. Wing span 8.65m. Wing area 10.06m2. Width with wings folded (tailplane width) 2.3m. Sweepback 0 .̊ Aspect ratio 7.4. Other data n/a.

POwErPLanTCisco Bull-max 250 two-stroke engine. Max power 24kW (33hp) @ 7400rpm. Helix 130 propellor. Belt reduction drive (optional clutch or direct drive). Electric and/or recoil start system with in-built decompression. Power per unit area 3.28hp/m2. Standard fuel capacity 18 litre (double tank optional).

wEIGHTS anD LOaDInGSEmpty weight 115kg. Max takeoff weight 230kg. Payload 115kg. Max wing loading 22.9kg/m2. Max power loading 7.0kg/hp. Load factors +4g, -2g recommended, +6g, -4g ultimate.

PErFOrMancE*Max level speed 75mph. Never exceed speed 80mph. Economic cruising speed 60mph. Power-off stall speed 28mph.

* Under unspecified test conditions. Further performance figures to be measured

PrIcE IncLuDInG VaT(assuming exchange rate of £1 = €0.88)Quick-build kit (40-50h) £16,898, ready-built £18,799. Both prices include engine and propeller but exclude delivery..

n/a = not available Data provided by manufacturer/importerData in text is tester’s experience

27January 2018

is exactly the same as the payload, which means that even a large pilot like me can fly with full tanks and remain within the maximum weight. According to Dave, fuel consumption averages 5 l/h, giving an en-durance of about 3.5h.

Spares supply should be prompt and the advice expert, since Dave is the UK agent for Eurofly as well as a qualified instructor and Skydrive is the agent for the cisco engine range. Both have untarnished repu-tations in their respective fields.

The alternatives in the UK currently are TLAc’s Sherwood Kub and the SD-1 Minisport. The Kub has very similar performance, but offers an enclosed cockpit and easy-to-fold wings, although the ready-to-fly version will cost you half as much again. Being a taildragger, it’s not quite as straightforward to han-dle on the ground, and you don’t get that spectacular view out.

The SD-1 Minisport is a different kettle of fish al-together. It’s a hotship taildragger with tiny wings. Its high stall speed (39mph) and small wheels will require a larger, flatter airfield and some specialist training before you jump in and open the throttle. The price falls roughly halfway between the Minifox and the Sherwood Kub.

So, which to choose? You will need to make up your own mind based

on your individual circumstances, but for my money the Minifox will give you huge amounts of fun and be simple to operate and maintain. And for anyone interested in aerial photography it has an additional advantage: it’s going to make a brilliant – and quiet – camera platform.

FLIGHT TEST Eurofly Minifox

AboveHands-free piloting optional; grin mandatory

Below Optional wide wheels for rougher ground

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26 Microlight Flying