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Grizzly
Rutan Grizzly at the EAA AirVenture Museum, Oshkosh. Image courtesy by TDL.
Role	Tandem-wing STOL research aircraftType of aircraft
Manufacturer	Rutan Aircraft Factory
Designer	Burt Rutan
First flight	January 22, 1982
Number built	1

The Rutan Model 72 Grizzly is a tandem-wing STOL research aircraft designed by Burt Rutan, now preserved at the EAA AirVenture Museum, Oshkosh. The aircraft exhibited excellent short take-off and landing (STOL) capabilities.

Design and development

This composite-construction aircraft features three lifting surfaces: A front wing with approximately half the span of the main wing and a cruciform empennage. Front and main wings are connected by a pair of struts with square cross-section which also serve as fuel tanks. Both wings carry Fowler flaps on part of their span for STOL. The fixed tail-wheel undercarriage has four low-pressure, small-diameter main-wheels, on two cantilever spring struts, with a spring mounted tail-wheel assembly. The four-seat cabin is completely enclosed with a combination of flat, squared and outward-bulged tear-drop shaped windows.

After completion of testing the Grizzly was donated to the EAA AirVenture Museum, Oshkosh in 1997.

Specifications

Data from Jane's all the World's Aircraft 1984–85

General characteristics

• Crew: 1
• Capacity: 3 passengers
• Powerplant: 1 × Lycoming O-360B 4-cylinder air-cooled horizontally-opposed piston engine, 180 hp (130 kW)
• Propellers: 2-bladed Hartzell Q-tip constant speed propeller

Performance

• Stall speed: 35 kn (40 mph, 65 km/h)

References

1. Taylor, John W. R., ed. (1984). Jane's all the World's Aircraft 1984–85 (75th ed.). London: Jane's Publishing Co. pp. 492–493. ISBN 0-7106-0801-2.

External links

• Aerofiles Grizzly information

• Aircraft first flown in 1982
• Rutan aircraft
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