To many observers, the Sky Ranger looks like a RANS Coyote. Based on general appearances, it appears the French light plane borrowed heavily from the popular model sold by the Kansas lightplane kit leader. But, Sky Ranger importer Richard Helm bristles a bit when he hears that statement and retorts, "People compare the Sky Ranger to the RANS Coyote. They say it's a knockoff, but the French designer didn't take anything from the Coyote. It's built completely different," although he admits, "It does look a lot like the Coyote.

DAN JOHNSON. 28 JULY 2002
 
  Give a Yankee welcome to the Sky Ranger. The French-designed ultralight is typical of a trend I think we'll be seeing with increasing frequency-imported light planes from Europe. Sky Ranger is built in the Ukraine by Aeros, Ltd. I visited this factory with Phil Lockwood of Lockwood Aviation in the spring of 2001. Once built by Synairgy in France, Sky Ranger production moved to this former eastern-block country in 1997. Aeros has found a ready market in the United States and around the world for its attractively priced and good-flying hang gliders. The company also makes trike wings for Sabre and many other trike manufacturers, so its entry into fixed-wing ultralights using the construction methods of hang gliders was a logical development.

Because the Sky Ranger was first introduced to the French market, it has become one of the most popular club planes in its native country, widely used by instructors to train new pilots.
 
In France, as in most of Europe, ultralights are commonly owned by aero clubs that manage recreational airfields. These aero clubs provide an easy, low-cost way for average pilots to fly and for newcomers to be introduced to flying. Many aero clubs provide instruction, and the clubs own and maintain the aircraft. The aero club concept has worked especially well with sailplanes; Europe has more than twice as many sailplanes as the United States and several times the sailplane pilot population. In fact, the aero club concept is an idea that U.S. enthusiasts may want to consider when the new sport pilot/light-sport aircraft rules are adopted.
 
French Origins

Creator Phillippe Prevot had ambitious design goals for the Sky Ranger: He sought to "develop an airplane...with good performance but with the possibility of being built by two persons in a week and that could be inspected and maintained by a person without special or technical knowledge."

Build it in a week! And maintain it yourself? With ease? Sounds like hype, but according to Rich and east coast representative, Kevin Green, Sky Ranger does go together fast and simply. Rich states, "It's the most popular ultralight in France, especially in the flight schools." In just over half a decade, the company claims deliveries of 500 Sky Rangers.

Because the Sky Ranger is appropriate for newer pilots, its landing gear may ccasionally suffer hard landings, but its easy repairability is a benefit for recreational pilots who prefer flying to handling wrenches. Owners can reasonably handle more of their own repair work, say Rich and Kevin.

Phillippe worked hard to keep the design as simple as possible. The Sky Ranger requires no welding, uses only straight main airframe members, and does not use composite materials for structural components. "The Sky Ranger is of typical ultralight constroction with tubes bolted together," clarifies Rich. Overall, Sky Ranger is based on triangularion from the centerline of the fuselage. According to Rich, the design has earned a French patent for the tubing airframe structure and its lack of complex, formed members.

Besides the simple design concept, the Sky Ranger has no obstructing aircraft components to make your entry harder. You need not slide behind, around, or step over any tubes to enter the Sky Ranger. This is rare among light aircraft designs, especially those using aluminum tubing for the main structure.

Rich says two people can fold the wings in 20 minutes; however, I never witnessed the effort. Folding wings have become a marketing plus for many designs, and Sky Ranger has also found this to be true.

I found the Sky Ranger I flew to be a well-equipped ultralight, especially at a fairly modest price ($12,500 without engine). My evaluation aircraft had hydraulic brakes, flaps, in-flight trim, remote primer, electric start, and an electric Ivo prop joined to a Rotax 503.

Sky Ranger's standard equipment flap lever is tucked almost out of sight between the seats and has a squeeze handle to allow movement between three positions of tlaps plus a neutral position. The in-flight trim is located at the back of the seat frames between pilots. A small lever adjusts tension on the elevator linkage in a manner common to ultralights.
 

  The high-wing Sky Ranger definitely has a similarity to the tri-gear version of the RANS Coyote, but its French designer and the United States importer state that's where the similarity ends. The Sky Ranger, with its side-by-side seating dual throtlles, and center control sticks is a popular trainer in France and is ganining popularity inthis country.
 
Americans Will Fit Well

Two large pilots should fit well in the Sky Ranger," says Rich. "Another 200-pounder and I fit comfortably, and the Rotax 503 performed very well," he explained while also endorsing the lower cost engine. In my flying, I also found the popular two-stroke to be ample.

Even for big folks, entry into the Sky Ranger is not hampered, thanks to a lone side structural member. Positioned at your hips, this single tube on a 45 degree angle is padded and mostly out of the way. In fact, you may come to like it just as sports car buffs prefer their auto seats with side bolsters to securely hold you in place. Especially with the doors off, pilots accustomed to some side structure may like the tube's position.

In fact, I found it comforting. I have lots of experience with even-more-open ultralights, and I usually enjoy the sensation. However, in the Sky Ranger with no doors installed and almost no side structure, I got a weird feeling that I could fall out. This sensation heightened when I deliberately made uncoordinated turns or maneuvers to test the ultralight's control responses. Though I rarely get this feeling and can't explain it in Sky Ranger, at least the machine's very sturdy seat belt system and that short, padded tube at my outside hip offered me a little security. Doors are available for the truly uneasy.

I found the access to the primary controls such as the joystick, flap lever, and trim lever to be good, but I really didn't care for the throttle in the Sky\par Ranger. For me, it was too much of a reach and offered no place to rest my hand. If you keep your hand on the throttle constantly, as I often do, the location caused fatigue. Rich says you can set up the throttle as a push-pull knob, like a Cessna, but that wouldn't help much over the lever arrangement. You'd still have the reach and no support point.

Because the Sky Ranger's seats are only adjustable during construction, I couldn't move the seat up closer to reduce my reach to the throttle. My reach to other switches and knobs was fine, so moving the seat forward wouldn't ease the long reach to the throttle.

The Sky Ranger's cockpit arrange ment felt somewhat like the older Kolb Mark III as your legs and feet had to angle toward the center of the fuselage (New Kolb's Mark III Extra fixes this shortcoming). The angle was less pronounced than in the Kolb, which has a pointier nose, but I found it less than optimal in comfort.

I also noticed heat being directed onto my left, outside leg and generally into the foot area of the cockpit. While I would love this during a Minnesota winter, my foot broiled in Florida's stifling heat.

Locating the brake on the forward side of the joystick was as useful and effective as any other designs that employ this mount, and the Sky Ranger's hydraulyc brakes worked with surprising power.

Prevot's skylight design-basically encompassing the entire fuselage over the cabin-allows you to look out the skylight in turns opposite your seating par side. But, because you sit high relative to the wing, tums had to be rather steeply banked to see laterally. In the Sky Ranger it seemed to me that you're best off using lateral vision before the turn. With the doors off and its large skylight, including two windows in the fabric above the fuel tank area, the Sky Ranger offers broad visibility.
 

  Entry and egress into/from the cockpit of the Sky Ranger is easy be cause there are no tubes, high door frames, etc. to get in the way. But, without doors, the aircraft may feel a bit too wide open to some, as Dan Johnson discov ered. The aircraft is available with doors to fully en close the machine.
 
Perfect for Instructional Use

For this flight evaluation, I used an aircraft donated by owner Tony Berman. Tony and Phillippe built this Sky Ranger; talk about your factory service! The two assembled the plane in three, 16-hour days (or 48 hours' construction time) and flew it. Granted, the clear coating, instrument fitting, and attachment of the cowl came later but in only three long days, mv test Sky Ranger went from crate to flight.

Despite the factory attention to building, this test bird had a mild right turn in it that caused me to use left rudder nearly all the time. Combined with the angled reach, I kept having to reposition my feet on the pedals to get a better purchase on them.

Rich says that by adjusting the bungee cord attached well aft of the pilot in the tailcone, you could fix some turn tendency by sliding the bungee to the appropriate side. This has limits, of course, but for small adjustments, it may prove sufficient. By creating a small opening in the skin on the underside, you can reach up and manipulate the bungee, which is attached to a mid-cone cross member. Using such an access point, you could occasionally make adjustments. Making this access point is easier than it sounds because the aircraft's covering envelope, which slips on the fuselage, has reinforced seams joined by cord lashing or Velcro closures. Ultimately, you'd want to correct the turn by aileron rigging when time permits, but a quick adjustment as just described would help while en route to a destination.

Rich explained that Phillippe always tightens up the return bungees on the rudder pedals quite firmly as he believes this configuration is better for students, as Rich accounted for some rudder stiffness I noted. By making the pedals resist movement, a student must work a little harder to flv the plane, but Phillippe feels they'll get necessary feedback while their tactile sense of control movement sharpens.

The dissimilarity of efforts-smooth, fairly light stick versus stiffer rudder pedals-made the harmony between stick and rudder less than perfect. My Dutch roll coordination exercises in the Sky Ranger were done with much less bank angle than in the Slry Raider II I'd flown earlier in the day. I made good quality but shallower Dutch rolls, which says a lot about overall control lightness, response, and harmony. As I tried to do them as steeply as I'd just done the Sky Raider II, I wallowed around the sky. Of course, my lack of experience in the model also contributes to control sloppiness.
 

Side-by-side is generous for even a couple of 200-pound-plus occupants, especially with the doors off. The seats can be adjusted fore and aft during construction, but once set do not adjust. Seat backs do flip forward to allow access to the fuel tank and a baggage compartment.

     The Sky Ranger uses a Wittman/Cessna-style landing gear that appears to take the bumps and hard landings common to instructional aircraft well. Another of the benefits of the design is its easy repairability.
 
Get Up and Go on the Cheap

Sky Ranger has sprightly if not inspiring performance. I loved that this airplane had a Rotax 503 engine, though Rich admits that he sees the logic for the 912-engine installation. Naturally, 80 hp versus 48 hp would give shorter take off rolls and stronger climbs, but it'd also cost $8,500 more and raise the weight by 70 pounds.

My experience suggests that the agreeably priced Rotax 503 could perform well in a flight school environment. Everybody loves the 503, and you save a lot of upfront cash, though one argument in favor of the 912 is that total overhaul expenses will be lower in the long run.

Climb in the Sky Ranger with the 503 engine is only about 500 fpm, I'd estimate. Tony had not installed an altimeter, so I couldn't be certain. Conversely, Rich and his 200-pound friend found the Sky Ranger climbed well even in Rich's hot home state of Arizona with its higher density altitude.

Individual performance categories are important, but Sky Ranger's overall package is a good one. Sky Ranger has won World Championship status two times since 1996. In the first two contests since the model arrived on the market not counting one in 2001-Phillippe Zen, then a dealer for the Sky Ranger in France, won in his competition class.

Rich summarizes this achievement simply. "If it wins, it must be a pretty good performing ultralight." Well rounded qualities and good piloting technique combined to help Zen and his Sky Ranger to log the dual victories.

The Sky Ranger's cruise was fairly speedy, thanks to an electrically adjusted prop. I recorded a high of 88 mph during some runs, while Phillippe reports that a 80-hp 912 will only go about 93 mph.\par Keep in mind that installed instrument error is alwavs a factor in my reporting.

Stalls occurred at low speeds, in the high 30s, again dependent on instrument accuracy. But intuitivelv I felt I could sense the lighter weight of the smaller engine and lighter airframe. All stalls-power on, power off, and accelerated-resisted any tendency to fall on a wing, and the nose break was mild or nonexistent. Indeed, these characteristics are good for students and for the rest of us.

I did no spins or other unusual attitude maneuvers because the aircraft didn't have a parachute. Sabre Aircraft, Rich's company, works closely with BRS and a system installation for the Sky Ranger is expected, but none was installed on this test ultralight. However, chutes have been fitted on the design, as Rich referenced a deployment in South Africa in the last couple vears. Unfortunately, information was sparse as to why the need arose or how the emergency system performed.
 
   

With a wide skylight window in the roof of the cockpit, a wide windshield, and side windows be hind the seats, visibility from the aircraft is excellent.

   The wide cockpit also offers a generous instru ment panel area, though this machine, which had just been constructed, did not yet have complete instrumentation installed. Again, because of its dual throttles, rudder pedals, and center-mounted stick with hand brake, the airplane is a conve nient training aircraft.
 
I'd advise a Close Look

If you have an interest in this airplane, you have several sources to see it. At the time of its introduction, Sky Ranger was already represented in three distinct locales of the United States and in Canada.

Sabre Aircraft, located in the greater Phoenix, Arizona, area, has the U.S. and Mexican distribution rights; Speedwing has Canada. Acting as dealers through Sabre Aircraft, Florida-based Arnet-Pereyra, manufaciurers of the Aventura and several other aircraft, and Kevin Green of West Virginia-based Green Landings, distribute the aircraft. Kevin is enthusiastic about the Sky Ranger and has consummated numerous sales. He also represents Flightstar Sportplanes.

The Sky Ranger is billed as an "ultra-fast build kit" with the flaps, ailerons, tailplane, vertical stabilizer, rudders, and elevator coming pre-built and covered. The rest of the airframe is referred to as "a number of subassemblies." In addition, the factory says that, "All joints come with the bolts already in position and attachment brackets already in their places."

Tony Berman says that covering the Sky Ranger was one of the easier jobs, as those surfaces merely slip on and tie up.

This is a big difference over conventional dope-and-fabric covering, which then requires heat-stretching, priming, and painting. You save both time and money with the Dacron envelope solution.

Green Landings advertises good prices on all models of Sky Rangers, and they have clear pricing about the cost to build it for you. Even if the task is supposedly quick and simple, it still takes 100 hours or more, making the Green Landings' offer of interest to many time-starved pilots. And, if built as a Part 103 ultralight, building the aircraft for you is completely legal.

The basic Sky Ranger kit, without engine, runs a shade over $12,000. Add the Rotax 503 plus mounts, exhaust, (non-electric) prop, and your choice of colors, the price tag hits $15,500. If you must have the 80-hp 912 Rotax plus its electric starter, you'll spend almost $24,000. Those interested in four-stroke advantages might also choose the HKS 700-E engine, which would offer more than adequate power at lower cost. But those aircraft will definitely not meet the weight limitations of FAR Part 103, so builders would need to register those aircraft in the experimental amateur built category.

  

 
Despite the higher price of the 912 model, Rich says, I ve looked at it all and I'm convinced the 912 is the way to go." He calculated purchase price, overhaul and maintenance, and fuel consumption and believes the four stroke engine is worth the considerable extra cost. Rich also agreed that the HKS 700E would make a good powerplant for the same reasons.

To compare, the Rotax 503 adds about $3,500 to the airframe price, not including the effort of installation. Have Sabre install a Rotax 912 and the comparable value is around $ 11,000 (though they do the work of installation for this price). Have Sabre fit an HKS and the add-on to the airframe will be under $9,000 thanks to new, lower prices from the Japanese engine distributed by HPower Ltd.

Big engine or little, four stroke or two, Sky Ranger makes an interesting new choice for private owners and flight schools. Either way, you might feel at home in the Sky Ranger.