October's meeting was a tour of COPA member Gordon Hindle's hanger on the northside of the field to see his Cavalon Gyrocopter, one of 27 in Canada. Twenty-two members and guests poured over this unusual looking aircraft and also on hand to answer questions was the Canadian sales representative, David Sigier from Air pro Gyro in Quebec.
With credit to Nick Bloom from Pilot magazine U.K., the following is a review of the Cavalon.
The Cavalon is a most striking-looking aircraft. With its egg-shaped pod, sharply pointed at front and rear, it has a sci-fi look, the kind of thing Frank Hampson might have pictured us all using instead of cars in the future in his illustrations in Eagle comic in the 1950s. Sitting in one in flight is not unlike sitting in a two-seat helicopter, with joystick and pedal controls, rotor blades whirling overhead and a splendid view out, particularly down. The cruise speed of around seventy knots is considerably slower than the Robinson R22’s 95, but then running costs for the Cavalon, particularly maintenance, will be considerably cheaper. Replacement rotor blades cost around $6,000 each and they are ‘lifed’ at 2,500 hours. Both Cavalon and the R22 require a significant outlay in training − a minimum of 35 hours to convert a standard PPL for ‘gyroplanes’ and 39 hours for helicopters. Perhaps the major difference is the Cavalon needs a runway of at least 1000 feet for takeoff, whereas the R22 doesn’t. (In theory the Cavalon can land ‘on the spot’, but in practice it usually needs a short runway for landing as well as for takeoff.) You can’t hover a Cavalon just above the ground and there’s no collective, the lever in helicopters controlling lift. This makes it easier to fly, but inevitably robs the autogyro of some of the helicopter’s versatility. The Cavalon has some superficial similarity to the old RAF 2000 (two-seat kit built autogyro), but with two major additions that make the aircraft far safer. The first is a tail boom with horizontal tail surfaces, which improves stability; the second is raising the rotor higher above the fuselage. Essentially, autogyros achieve their pitch and roll control in the same manner as weightshift microlights, by altering the centre of gravity in relation to the ‘wing’. So the greater the distance between ‘wing’ and centre of gravity, the greater the control and stability. There is a built-in pitch/power coupling in most autogyros: the engine has to be mounted high to give clearance to the propeller blades. Increasing power tends to pitch the aircraft nose-down and any suggestion of negative G is anathema to a lifting surface dependent on airflow from below. (which is what keeps the autogyro’s blades turning). You can get away with having the thrust line on the fuselage axis, but only if the rotors are considerably higher still, as they are in the Cavalon. Fuel consumption is 4.49 gallons per hour, giving an endurance of 5.5 hours, and a range of around 360nm. There isn’t an internal steel tube structure: it’s a fully monocoque carbon fibre composite shell, except for the steel tube on which the three fins, tailplane and rudder are mounted (there’s no elevator). This tube is kinked and has a rubber ‘tail bumper’ on it. The Cavalon has a separate mast, one of many hidden design features. The rotor blades are aluminium. The blades in an autogyro are made to turn by airflow from below, either because the aircraft is descending (gliding) or because the rotor cone is tilted at an angle of attack relative to flight. Autogyros cannot stall, but if the blades aren’t rotating fast enough the aircraft will still fall rapidly, at least until upward airflow restores lift and control.One complication with autogyros is the advancing blades on one side generate more lift than the retreating blades on the other. Juan de la Cierva had a ‘Eureka moment’ in his development of these aircraft when he came up with a simple automatic system for correcting this − flapping hinges. However, this does make autogyros with conventional anti-clockwise rotation more efficient for single occupancy if the pilot sits in the right-hand seat. The seats are comfortable and the cabin has a reasonably high roof and roomy feel. There are no toe brakes and no differential braking. Instead there’s a brake lever rather cleverly combined with the centre console-mounted throttle lever, allowing one-handed operation of both. The Cavalon is versatile, beautiful to look at, a pleasure to fly and certain to turn heads wherever you go. It makes a very acceptable substitute for a Robinson R22.
The next COPA Flight 6 meeting is Tuesday, November 7th. starting at 7:00 PM. and we meet at the Victoria Flying Club pilots lounge This months will be our Annual General meeting and we are looking for members to step forward and get involved with the COPA Flight 6 chapter. You neither need to be a member of the Victoria Flying Club nor COPA National to attend
