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FAQsQuestions1°) How can I have some shade in the canopy?2°) What level of crash protection is offered by the MCR? 3°) What makes the MCR so special? 4°) How far can I go in tailoring the aircraft to my exact requirements? 5°) What are the typical operating costs for a MCR? 6°) Where can I test fly a MCR? 7°) Can I ferry fly the aircraft from the factory? 8°) Can you find a pre-owned aircraft for me? 9°) How many MCRs are flying worldwide? 10°) What are the differences between various countries’ LSA regulations, and which are the MCR best suited for Australia? 11°) Why there isn’t any MCR in the US LSA category? 12°) Why is the MCR Pickup called MCR-2S by the Italian distributor? 13°) Has the MCR got a steering nose wheel or a castering nose wheel? 14°) Would the factory be able to do a Yellow Pickup? 15°) In the MCR, we access by standing on the seat and sliding down into position, could we have a floor in the front and put the seats on rails sliding the seats back out of the way to get in and out without standing on the seats? 16°) I have 190h and want a good cross-country plane, is a MCR for me? 17°) Do you have an estimate of shipping costs? 18°) There are a lot of different models of MCRs, why aren’t they all on the website? 19°) Is it possible to incorporate a specialised camera wing mount and the ability to run cabling through the wing to the attached camera? 20°) How does a MCR-4S/Limousine compare with a Cessna 206? 21°) What are the differences between the MCR-4S and the Pickup? 22°) What common options are available? 23°) Are you considering building a high wing aircraft? 24°) Is the MCR suited for Ab initio pilots? 25°) What level of kit do you suggest for overseas buyers? 26°) How did the Dyn'Aero range of aircraft evolved over time? 27°) How does the 2 blade Dyn'Aero compare with the 3 blade MT propeller? 28°) What do you think of electric constant speed propellers? 29°) How can I fly at 200 mph with a decent payload? 30°) What do you think of diesel engines? 31°) What is the difference between the Australian E-LSA and S-LSA category? 32°) In Australia, what are the potential benefits of LSA v VH aircraft? 33°) Why is the cruise speed the decisive factor when buying an aircraft? 34°) I don’t have a license yet, should I buy the aircraft nonetheless? 35°) Is the MCR-4S type certificated? 36°) In the UK, what are the limitations of kit aircraft? 37°) How the MCR Mountain does compare to the Club? 38°) Can a kit aircraft be operated under IFR? 39°) What do you think of the Lycoming 233 or the Continental 0200D series engines? 40°) What are the differences between factory built and kit aircraft? 41°) What are the differences between the MCR-4S, Pickup and Limousine S-LSA? 42°) Do you supply the trailer for the MCR01 ? 43°) Is there a retractable variant of available aircraft (Club, 4s etc)?
44°) How can I be sure I will get a complete kit?
45°) Do you still offer build support in your factory in France? (As at February 2012) 46°) Is the Sportster the same as the Mini-Cruiser? 47°) Is it cheaper to buy the engine from a Rotax distributor in the States? 48°) Could you explain the difference between Va and design maneuvering speed? Answers1°) How can I have some shade in the canopy?click to enlarge Some MCRs have the upper part of the canopy painted (see photo). It is creates a different look, and is very efficient at providing shade.An alternative solution is to buy an automotive type folding sunshade with suction cups. The protection is good and the advantage is that we can see through the net so for the safety it is perfect. Here is the link (if broken please report to us): http://www.volez.com/prod-0-1156-rideau_pare_soleil_ulm_avion.html BACK TO TOP 2°) What level of crash protection is offered by the MCR?The crash performance of the aircraft is good, as we are protected by the structure of the wing. There is no damage to the body in case of hard landings (close to stall speed). On the other hand, as on any aeroplane, a crash at cruise speed or in spin will destroy the plane. It is only a matter of energy. As the ULC stalls at 65 Km/h and is light, it behaves well. The MCR doesn’t have a reputation for crashing.BACK TO TOP 3°) What makes the MCR so special?Other merits of the MCR range are in the design and the manufacturing. Here is an extract of the email I received from Barry Wrenford : “the design and quality of the build components is superb, and how they have thought outside the box to achieve the low weight and design that makes up the aircraft.” To produce the LSA that has the fastest cruise speed AND the longest range AND the largest volume AND the highest payload, using carbon fibre is a necessity but it’s not enough. The design must be aimed to reduce weight up to the last nut and bolt. As any MCR owner will tell you, it works. It means, in terms of production, that the design is made for performance and this, to the detriment of production processes. Consequently manufacturing the best LSA on the market is again labour intensive as each component has to be hand crafted and carefully adjusted. I guess it’s the fate of any top performance vehicle. I think Barry’s comment says, how labour intensive it can be, to manufacture a MCR.BACK TO TOP 4°) How far can I go in tailoring the aircraft to my exact requirements?As you could expect from a high end product, the MCR range offers its customers a high level of personalisation through a wide range of options. This, again, ensures that each and every customer will get the best return on investment as his/her MCR will be tailored made to fit exactly its purpose. For example there are options on the wing tank and landing gear. These options are structural options, it means that this high level of customization reduces costs of ownership.I admit that applying this recipe to LSA can appear a bold decision, but it is in line with DynAero’s history which started with manufacturing aerobatic planes. Now that they have produced hundreds of MCRs, it is proven that MCRs are among the cheapest aircraft to operate. Consequently many flying schools have chosen the 4S as their GA training aircraft and the Pickup as their LSA training aircraft. It is also widely known in Europe that MCR owners fly a lot more and further than owners of other planes, this is due to the performance, comfort and PLEASURE you get from a MCR. It is now our task to spread this knowledge to the Australian market. There are a lot of options. The logic of the manufacturer is to allow each owner to tailor the aircraft according to his specific needs, and by not putting all the options in standard to reduce the empty weight and therefore to offer more useful load to an owner who wouldn’t need all the options. The manufacturer wants to leverage on the kit built process of his range of aircraft to offer numerous option possibilities to the final operator. The idea is to “tailor make” an aircraft according to the needs of the final operator rather than having one fixed offer, with some options not required and adding unnecessary weight to the aircraft. BACK TO TOP 5°) What are the typical operating costs for a MCR?In the UK magazine “pilot” issue December 2009, there is a buyer’s guide about the MCR01 Club. The owner of the MCR Club says that he estimates the hourly cost of the MCR to be around £40-45 and maintenance cost around £500 a year. Consequently he is happily flying around 80-100 hours per year with his machine and has travelled throughout France down to Corsica (long leg above the Mediterranean Sea). The MCR-4S is known for having the lowest operating cost of any 4 seater on the market. In flying schools, the 4S are often flying in the range of 700 hours per year thanks to less grounding for maintenance but also thanks to higher demand from members and customers because of the pleasure you get while flying a MCR, this in turn reduces cost of ownership. For all these reasons, there is a strong demand on the second hand market and the depreciation rate of a 4S is around 3% per annum, this is way below the industry standard and again plays a role in reducing cost of ownership. So at the end of the day, MCR owners are putting the money upfront when purchasing the plane because they know that the day they will sell it and do the maths they will have been flying the highest performance aircraft on the market for the cheapest cost of ownership, airline companies who have bought the A380 have done exactly the same calculation.BACK TO TOP 6°) Where can I test fly a MCR?We have demonstrators in many countries, they are operated by our distributors. For example you can test fly the MCR Club in NZ. We also have a network of owners who are more than happy to take you along for a trial flight, for example we have a MCR 4S in New Caledonia and Australia. You can also test fly them at the factory or we will find you owners/operators if we know where you intend to visit (for example, we have some Pickup/Club in Italy).In Australia we have 1 VLA (Perth) and 1 MCR-4S (NSW) In NZ we have 1 MCR-4S, 2 ULCs and 2 Clubs. In New Caledonia we have one 4S. BACK TO TOP 7°) Can I ferry fly the aircraft from the factory?A ferry flight from France appears to be complex to organize, even though it could cost less. The advice of the manufacturer is to put 2 Limousine into one 40ft container to share the costs.BACK TO TOP 8°) Can you find a pre-owned aircraft for me?It’s no surprise that you find it difficult to find a second hand MCR as owners usually keep them. Once you have a MCR to fly in, you have nothing to upgrade to so why would you sell it?When it comes to flying, there is nothing compares to a MCR. Which is also a reason why there aren’t many on the second hand market. It’s like owning a Ferrari, you can upgrade to the new Ferrari but you won’t change for a Mercedes. It takes in theory 6 months before delivery for a new ready-to-fly ultralight, 8-12 months is probably more realistic. Therefore going for a second hand one, especially if it’s a factory built one (as opposed to kit), is the best solution. The problem with second hand aircraft is that depending on the country, the private owner has paid up to 19.5% GST and it’s not recoverable. The Dynaero MCRs have a very low market depreciation because of the demand and because of the quality. I’ve seen at Darois a 10 year old MCR Club, and it looked like new, the paint was still absolutely white and as the inside is raw carbon you couldn’t see any wear and tear. As an example the market depreciation for a 4S is estimated at around 3%/year. Therefore if we search for a second hand one, we need to find one without GST, in other words we need to find a demonstrator. BACK TO TOP 9°) How many MCRs are flying worldwide?There are approximately 40 MCR Clubs and 15 MCR Pick Ups flying. The best selling models are currently the ULC (200 units) because it is the cheapest of DynAeros 2 seaters that fit the European LSA regulation (Vs0 35Kts, 475Kg MTOW) and the 4S (130 units) because it has excellent performance and very low operating costs for a 4 seater.As in May 2010, there has been more than 580 aircraft sold worldwide: • 37 CR-100, • 400 MCR 2 seaters , • 135 MCR-4S and • 15 MCR Pickup. BACK TO TOP 10°) What are the differences between various countries’ LSA regulations, and which are the MCR best suited for Australia?In France and other countries, you can do flight training in an experimental aircraft as long as it isn’t for commercial purpose. It means that an incorporated aeroclub, usually not-for-profit organization, can use a 4S for training. This isn’t possible in Australia. That’s why the 4S sells so well in Europe. If it was possible to use experimental aircraft for training in Australia it would probably be very successful here too. On the other hand, the Australian S-LSA allows for the use of LSAs for GA training (you can log your time for PPL/CPL) whereas in Europe you can’t use an LSA to get your PPL/CPL neither can you do Night Flying/IFR with an LSA.DynAero’s main market is Europe, especially Germany and the wealthiest countries. Australia has an LSA regulation that gives full advantages to the MCR range especially the Club and the Limousine for the following reason:
I hope I’m not confusing you here. My point is that due to the regulations, and for that reason only, some aircraft are very competitive in some countries and less interesting in others. The Australian and European regulations are different enough to explain why some MCRs are very interesting here and not so much there. If you were in Europe, in France for what I’m sure of, you wouldn’t be able to buy the Club ready-to-fly (Experimental) but you could do it with the Pickup and Limousine (LSA). You wouldn’t be able to log your flight time in your PPL log book with the Pickup or Limousine (LSA) but you could do it with the Club (Experimental). You wouldn’t be able to do night flying with the Pickup or Limousine (LSA) but you could do it with the Club (Experimental). I’m sure this would completely change your decision making process, and you would probably look into an ULC (ready-to-fly) or 4S (log your flight time as PPL, do night flying). The European regulations are very tough on Vs0 and MTOW and the fact that you can’t use them for PPL/CPL training, night flying or IFR but on the other hand it is very open in terms of design: you can have variable pitch propeller, retractable landing gear etc. As Europe is a very competitive market due to all these countries competing again each others, you finally get what I see as the best achievable in the LSA market. Because the regulation forces manufacturers to be very clever with their design especially in terms of weight and approach speed, which in return pushes for good efficiency both in term of aerodynamics and structures, but after that manufacturers can compete on performance without limitations. If you look at the US LSA regulation with all its limitations, you can’t expect anything “cutting edge” from them: the cruise speed is limited to 120 Kts, no variable pitch propellers, no retractable landing gear, but 600 Kg MTOW. In other words these are the specifications for a heavy underperforming aircraft, we could call them agricultural aircraft. From there the manufacturers have few selling points to compete on, beside the range the only real one is comfort. So they make big heavy aircraft for less mobile people. That explains why their Experimental market is so dynamic. If a pilot wants to have anything else than an agricultural aircraft he has to build it himself, there is no alternative. I think that Australian pilots are very lucky indeed. French and US pilots certainly have good reasons to be very jealous. They would love to be able to operate a Pickup or a Limousine at 132 Kts/600Kg or to buy a Club ready-to-fly and operate it at 146 Kts/544Kg. BACK TO TOP 11°) Why there isn’t any MCR in the US LSA category?There are many different planes in the MCR range, in the US they are all falling into the experimental category because they fly much faster than 120Kts and their landing speed is above the US LSA threshold (due to the fact that the landing speed for the US LSA category is defined without flaps extended, there is no benefit to DynAero’s efficient flap systems). In fact, the current US LSA rule is declarative only, and most of the US LSA which are claiming to stall below 45 Kts are in fact way out of the rule. A simple calculation shows that at 600Kg, to be able to land below 45 Kts without flaps a minimum wing surface of 11 Sq/m is necessary, and this is far from being the case for many US LSAs. DynAero wouldn’t make its way into the market with a product that doesn’t comply with the regulations, so currently all the aircraft are in the experimental category for the US market. However, if you don't want to spend time building your kit aircraft, we often have a large range of pre-owned and demonstrator aircraft.BACK TO TOP 12°) Why is the MCR Pickup called MCR-2S by the Italian distributor?Christophe Robin, the CEO of DynAero gave the name “Pickup” to this model, that’s his call and the name of a product is part of the manufacturer’s IP so generally we wouldn’t change it even if our opinion differs.Our position is different to the one of the distributors you’d find on dynaero’s website because we are a worldwide representative, we don’t have a specific territory. Consequently we receive enquiries from many different countries, so on our website we have to stay consistent with the general offer and therefore we won’t change the name or the specifications of an aircraft according to a specific country’s culture. If we were selling only in Australia and NZ, we would probably call the “pickup” the “MCR ute” or “MCR utility” because it would make more sense to the customers, but then it wouldn’t make any sense for other countries. Christophe Robin could have chosen a more generic word, like “cargo” or “caravan” etc. However, to clarify the term I have recently added this sentence at the beginning of the page of the Pickup: “colloquially called a ute or utility (from "Coupe utility") in Australia and New Zealand, are known in South Africa as a bakkie (pronounced "bucky"),in Romania as "slipper", in Egypt as "half truck", and in Israel as a tender.” (from Wikipedia). BACK TO TOP 13°) Has the MCR got a steering nose wheel or a castering nose wheel?All MCRs have a steering nose wheel.BACK TO TOP 14°) Would the factory be able to do a Yellow Pickup?Click to enlarge Yes it is possible to get this Ferrari Yellow paint, however the white is recommended as it weathers better in terms of colour stability (pigmentation) and gives better protection against heat (it reflects more of the sunlight so the airframe skin stays cooler than with a colour), therefore reducing aircraft ageing as the synthetic resin works less. This isn’t too much of a problem in Victoria though.BACK TO TOP 15°) In the MCR, we access by standing on the seat and sliding down into position, could we have a floor in the front and put the seats on rails sliding the seats back out of the way to get in and out without standing on the seats?Yes it is true that you get in a MCR like you get into a sport plane like an aerobatic aircraft or a sailplane more than a Piper or a Cessna. It has its advantages and disadvantages. The design of the MCR is quite similar to what you get on sailplanes so as to reduce the frontal area. It’s for the same reason that hand brakes may be more appropriate than foot brakes, but this is very much a personal choice.The company said that putting the seats on rails would be a design change, so technically the answer is YES it is possible to do it but there would be an additional development cost for the customization. The actual design saves on weight and cross section. And once you’re in the seat, you feel very comfortable flying the aircraft as you feel a kind of bond with the plane, the same way you feel you have wings and you feel the air when you fly a glider. Putting seats on rails wouldn’t impair this feeling I guess, but I don’t know what it means for the manufacturer in terms of design change but it might be still possible ! BACK TO TOP 16°) I have 190h and want a good cross-country plane, is a MCR for me?There is plethora of LSAs models in the market, and the buyer is left with limited time and possibilities to really investigate all of them and decide which one is the best match. The first step is to short list according to the (claimed) performances and various specifications. And I think that, from a pragmatic perspective, the second step is to fly them.I am a glider pilot (and instructor) first, then I went into skydiving, then LSAs (instructor as well) and then GA aircraft (Twin engine, aerobatics, night flying), and in the Air Force I was flight trainer instructor (IFR) and then aircraft engineer (instructor). In total I’m rated on 35 different types of aircraft (I probably have missed some here). And my position now is that I don’t hear or believe anyone or anything until I fly the plane myself, because they are so different from one another, and you find out what you like and dislike only once you’ve flown them. I recently had to get a rating in a Cessna 182S. Up to recently I have managed to avoid flying Cessna’s because they look ugly from the outside and therefore they weren’t appealing to me. Moreover I don’t like high wing planes. But I wanted to join some club members for a trip to Chatham Island, and since they crashed their Twin Comanche I had no aircraft with a decent useful load and range at the club. The only one I found was the C182S, so I got my rating. I have never been able to understand this “love story” that goes on about Cessnas. I approached this Cessna with some preconceptions, but I tried to keep an open mind. My conclusion is that most of my preconceptions were true. It isn’t nice to fly, the controls are very heavy and this is only due to poor design. The performance is appalling, we need 230hp to get a paltry 120Kts (that’s 50L/h fuel). The visibility with this high wing is very poor, which has consequences for the safety. But, as I am flying with my family (2 kids aged 2 and 5 and my wife), this aircraft is very well suited for us. It is more practical to load the kids at the back with the 2 doors and high wing, compared to a Piper with one door and a low wing. We can carry the baggage for the entire family for many days at the back of the plane, there is plenty of room. I can fly full fuel with the 4 of us and the baggage, it gives us 6 hours endurance which we won’t use as the kids get bored after 1 hour, but thanks to that I don’t have to refuel for the way back so I save time and hassle at the destination airfield. The short take off capability of the aircraft is impressive and this is very reassuring when flying with the family from short strips. The trade off is on the cruise speed and fuel consumption (hourly cost), with this plane. So in conclusion I know very well what I can expect from this aircraft, but I’m definitely not in love with Cessnas, I still don’t understand why people are making such a fuss about them, I don’t even understand why people are buying them, personally I would prefer the club to buy something more modern. I don’t know about the Australian Lightwing, I’ve never flown one. But I do know about the MCR. In our latest video “Flying New Zealand 2009”, you can see some footage when I went to Wellington from Auckland, that’s 281Nm point to point. I had to go to Wellington to pick up some important documents that I didn’t want to see going by normal post. So I called Harvey Lockie, the owner of our Club demonstrator, and off we went. I had an appointment to get the documents and was in a hurry, so we couldn’t wait for a day with absolute blue sky all the way. We met at the airfield at 9am, that’s reasonable for a normal day, we didn’t want to waste time refuelling, as we had way enough for Wellington we took off quickly. We had a 500ft ceiling at the beginning, so we tracked along the coast at 300ft. With a conventional aircraft this would be borderline, but with the Club, thanks to its 360° visibility, high wing loading and crisp controls, we cut through the turbulence and tracked easily in these conditions. After about 1 hour we found some more blue sky, so we climbed to 6,500ft (VFR on top) straight to Wellington (we have a transponder). We landed at Wellington in between 2 airliners and parked at the aeroclub. Then at Wellington I collected my documents, we had plenty of time to walk in the city, take a lunch on the harbour, Harvey took me through the history of the city and how the sea level near the harbour changed suddenly after a earth quake etc. When we had no more to do, we went back to the airport, took on a bit of fuel, and took off for a more scenic flight as the conditions had improved. So we came back via Mt Ruapehu (Volcano) and were at home by 6pm. This flight was the 3rd of December 2008, since then I’ve done plenty of flying, but it is still the best cross country flight I’ve done in New Zealand, and this is certainly thanks to the MCR Club. Firstly because I couldn’t have done it in another plane (too slow, too expensive, too unsafe), secondly because it was pure pleasure all the way. Compare that with the week-end I’ve just spent with the family at Tauranga using the C182S, even my wife says it was boring flying at 8,500ft (outward) and 5,500ft (return), at 120Kts with the auto-pilot engaged and the controller telling us where to go. My oldest kid nearly got sick during the outward leg as the plane with its low wing loading doesn’t behave well under the clouds, and they were both sleeping during the way back which was good for me. So my only advice before you commit to buying a plane, whichever it is, is to fly it and then your wife flies it. Having a small range is the difference between a plane that sits in a hangar and a plane that flies. Having a slow cruise speed does exactly the same. Owners of MCRs are known to do a lot of travelling with their planes, and you can see that in the various press articles available on our website. Harvey took his Club to visit Norfolk Island, that’s 722Nm over the water. Don’t worry about your 190 hours, the ULC is a microlight in France, it lands at 35 Kts, easier to fly than that is a kite (I’m joking). Keep in mind that you are putting money into an asset, so you want to use it. A plane costs less than a car in term of cost by kilometre, if you actually use it. If it sits in the hangar because both you and your wife find it boring after the initial 20 hours, then you are wasting your money, should it be $10 or $100,000. The reason why my family likes flying is because I introduced them very gradually into flying, and always put a lot of effort into making sure it was a positive and pleasant experience for them. Now they like doing night flights around Auckland, or small cross countries for the week-end. The plane isn’t just thing that makes noise and shakes under turbulence, it is a tool for doing great things, like visiting new places. This notion of POSSIBILITIES is important for private pilots. If the plane you buy doesn’t offer you possibilities, then chances are it is going to sit in a hangar. And a plane that has no range or cruise speed always ends up at the rear of the hangar. Note that we can put an auto-pilot in the MCR if you want to do long cross country flights. BACK TO TOP 17°) Do you have an estimate of shipping costs?Shipping depends on the currency rate of Euro+US$+currency of the destination country, and it also depends on the aircraft model because the container required is a 20ft for a Club and 40ft for a Pickup. So it isn’t possible to give an estimate before we know what model is considered and for which country. As an example, 2 Pickup will fit in a 40ft. We had two 4S in one. Would be approx $8,000 AUD for the freight, and approx 4000 Euros for the packaging of the 2 aircraft.BACK TO TOP 18°) There are a lot of different models of MCRs, why aren’t they all on the website?The MCR range of aircraft includes 12 models, the 2 models that benefit the most from the Australian S-LSA regulation are the Club and the Limousine. But you also have the ULC (STOL Club-S-LSA), the Sportster (Kit only, experimental category), the MiniCRuiser (Kit Only, experimental category), the Mountain (S-LSA), the 4S (4 seaters), the Twin-R.All models are available in kit form, and some are available ready to fly in the S-LSA category. This is why we have currently only 4 models, these are the 4 models that are most interesting for Australia. The Mountain has been sold in very limited numbers, it is a ULC with a tail dragger landing gear, there is no application for it in Australia. I didn’t mention the R180, a glider towing aircraft with a Lycoming 180hp engine, nor the ecolight, the glider towing version of the ULC for the Swiss market, fitted with a Rotax 914. The sportster doesn’t have flaps, it has full length ailerons, so it is very agile but it is difficult to slow down on approach. It can’t be sold ready-to-fly as it doesn’t fit the LSA regulation. So as you see it isn’t relevant to put all the versions at once on our website, it is better to short list the ones that are of interest for the overseas market. When we get to know the customer we can tailor make an aircraft for him as with the kit build concept we can offer a lot of options so that the aircraft is optimized for its final use. BACK TO TOP 19°) Is it possible to incorporate a specialised camera wing mount and the ability to run cabling through the wing to the attached camera?YES we can make one, it has already been done for EADS. So it would be based on the experience we have with the previous pod but tailor made for you, so I don’t know how much it could cost at this stage.BACK TO TOP 20°) How does a MCR-4S/Limousine compare with a Cessna 206?The 4S/Limousine have more range than a C210, are a lot less noisy and a lot more fuel efficient, but they don’t have the same useful load or cruise speed. The 4S/Limousine cruise speed is a 130+Kts IAS. The useful load of a S-LSA Limousine limited to 600 Kg MTOW is 704 Lbs/320Kg. The 4S has a 750 Kg MTOW which gives a bit more useful load. The range of a S-LSA Limousine is 1370 Nm with a Rotax 912S at 75% cruise. Most of the time they come with tuned exhaust silencer, it’s an option but as it improves fuel efficiency everyone takes it, it pays for itself through fuel savingsBACK TO TOP 21°) What are the differences between the MCR-4S and the Pickup?The differences between the Pickup and 4S are:
As an estimate, this is the cost of a Pickup ready-to-fly in the following configuration: Rotax 912S, Long range tanks, toe operated brakes, CS hydraulic MT prop, Garmin 296, EFIS/EMS Dynon 180 with fuel flow, radio SL 40, transponder GTX 328, ergonomic carbon fibre instrument panel, tuned exhaust silencer, night VFR lighting, oil-pneumatic landing gear with hydraulic disc brakes, ready-to-fly in the S-LSA category. Comes at 149,597 Euros. A 4S would be very close to that. BACK TO TOP 22°) What common options are available?The options available are:
The logic of the manufacturer is to allow each owner to tailor the aircraft according to his specific needs, and by not putting all the options standard to reduce the empty weight and therefore to offer more useful load to an owner who wouldn’t need all the options. In any case, you’ll have to decide on the following options:
For the instrumentation, you can also have a GPS Garmin 296 fitted in the instrument panel (1790 Euros), or an AVMAP 4 (2270 Euros). BACK TO TOP 23°) Are you considering building a high wing aircraft?I don’t think DynAero has any plans to make a high wing plane, for some reason in France we prefer low wing planes, they handle better and give a better visibility to the pilot, it may be a kind of cultural thing. And if you ditch, it’s better to be in a low wing plane. Note that most of the aircraft manufacturers are making low wing aircraft: Piper, Beechcraft, Cirrus, Diamond, etc. Piper did the PA19 which has an interesting legacy of bush planes, but Cessna retains this market of “agricultural planes”.BACK TO TOP 24°) Is the MCR suited for Ab initio pilots?On our website you can see that we've made a video called "want to fly, think ultralight" available on dailymotion: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xbksac_want-to-fly-think-ultralight_sportOn this video I've been flying some high wing easy to handle microlights: X'Air, Hannuman, Fly Synthesis Storch, Sky ranger. All of them are available in kit form, so I have a bit of knowledge about these types of aircraft and can compare them with the range of Dynaero MCR aircraft. I also fly twin engine aircraft and aerobatic planes and I did fly fighter jets (video Longovicus 2K3), so I know what we have at the other end of the spectrum in terms of complex aircraft, and I would definitely classify the MCRs as easy to handle aircraft suitable for ab-initio pilots. Dynaero offers a wide range of aircraft and maybe the MCR Club isn't the best suited for you in term of ab-initio training, even though it has been designed by an aeroclub for training use. You may want to look at the MCR ULC, it is the STOL version of the Club, ULC meaning Ultra Light Club. It has longer wings than the Club. In the video "want to fly think ultralight", the nicest plane to fly was the Fly Synthesis Storch: very good handling, STOL capabilities, available in kit form. However the performance between a Storch and a Club/ULC have nothing in common, and therefore the risk with investing your time and money into a low performance aircraft is that very quickly you'll find its performance frustrating. Then you'd end up with an aircraft not giving you full satisfaction and you may not have the will, time or budget to get into another construction project. The VLA is completely different to the Club. The VLA is the fastest MCR in the range, the wing profile and wingspan is different but more importantly it doesn't have ailerons and flaps as it has full length ailerons, also called flaperons. Consequently the handling is extremely responsive, and has more adverse yaw at low speeds on approach and therefore it isn't recommended to ab-initio pilots. The Club and ULC have been designed specifically for easy handling and STOL capabilities. They are fitted with double slotted flaps allowing for a slow approach speed. They have a very low empty weight giving low momentum to the aircraft and therefore making them suited for training. All Dynaero aircraft can be highly tailored by their builder to be personalized and adapted to the taste of each and any builder, in terms of engine, propeller, instrumentation, and various options like brake controls etc. Therefore I would be very surprised you can't make up the MCR that fits your bill. There are also a number of components that can be made by the manufacturer to speed construction. MCR Builders are forming a very strong community worldwide and assistance is always a phone call or an email away. There have been hundreds of MCR kits constructed in the past few years so it is a very sensible choice for a kit plane. Moreover it is also financially a sensible choice as the depreciation rate of MCRs is very low compare to any other kitset, so the retained value plays a huge part in the low operating costs. Any other kit would depreciate at 30% per annum, the depreciation of a MCR is a fraction of this, around 3% for a MCR4S for example. BACK TO TOP 25°) What level of kit do you suggest for overseas buyers?The kit we are strongly suggesting for America is the MSA kit, it has the more critical tasks finished to allow for local construction. Any kit below that level of finishing will require the use of jigs/fixtures that are available only at the factory, so unless you want to come to France and do some construction under the builder assistance program, we’ll base the quote on the MSA kit.BACK TO TOP 26°) How did the DynAero range evolved over time?The History of the MCR is as follows;
BACK TO TOP 27°) How does the 2 blade DynAero compare with the 3 blade MT propeller?In NZ we have 2 MCR Club, one with the 2 blade Dynaero the other one with a 3 blade MT.The differences we have observed are:
The new 3 blade Dynaero is aimed at giving the advantages of the 2 blade in term of weight and price, and the advantages of the 3 blade in terms of T/O roll. BACK TO TOP 28°) What do you think of electric constant speed propellers?Electric props are fine for variable pitch use – they can prove unreliable when used for constant speeding. When they are trying to constant speed they just don’t seem to be able to hold rpm in turbulence or fast throttle changes, and they don’t seem to be durable in the pitch change motor and mechanism.BACK TO TOP 29°) How can I fly at 200 mph with a decent payload?200 mph, this is 174 Kts. To carry a decent payload at such a speed, you need a big engine, and a big engine means a big fuel bill at the end of each flight. DynAero is about designing highly efficient and economical aircraft. The circle of virtue is simple: The less empty weight->The smaller the engine for the same payload, the smaller the engine->the lowest the fuel consumption.So everything starts with the design of the aircraft, aiming at saving weight ounce by ounce everywhere. What the design engineers want to achieve is the biggest payload on a Rotax engine (912 ULS 100hp as a reference, burns 18L/h). The best way to save on an aircraft weight is to use carbon fibre...everywhere. Then comes the cruise speed. Again the equation is simple: The less drag->the highest the cruise speed. To reduce the drag, you need to reduce the wet area, hence the wing surface. Small wing surface means high landing speed, so you need to develop highly efficient double slotted flaps. To summarize it all, I will quote E.F Schumacher, author of Small is Beautiful: “Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius –and a lot of courage- to move in the opposite direction”. BACK TO TOP 30°) What do you think of diesel engines?DynAero has done many trials with Diesel engines and their conclusion is that as of today, diesel engines for aircraft come from the automotive industry and as a result new models are emerging every 5 years or so. It would therefore force the manufacturer to redesign the aircraft around a new engine every 5 years, which is untenable in term of manufacturing costs.From a technical perspective, Dynaero has seen some interesting developments around the diesel with reasonable results, but this new type of engine has its own set of difficulties to get around. For example an aircraft would probably use JetA1 for the engine, where as diesel is what the engine has been built for, and JetA1 being dryer than diesel the engine will tend to wear more quickly. Dynaero wouldn't go that way for now because there isn't enough feedback so far on these kind of engines. BACK TO TOP 31°) What is the difference between the Australian E-LSA and S-LSA category?there are 2 types of LSA in Australia: E-LSA and S-LSA. E-LSA has the limitations of kit built aircraft: no training, no hire or reward, no flying over congested areas. S-LSA is a type certificate with the same prerogatives than any production aircraft, so it can be used like a GA aircraft BUT. And this is where we are entering the grey area. BUT it depends if it is RAAus or VH registered. In theory if it is RAAus registered it can’t fly into controlled airspace and it must fly in VFR only, but according to the feedback I have, if it is fitted with a transponder it can fly into controlled airspace, therefore above 5,000ft. And from there you can understand why we have a grey area. So my understanding is that if the S-LSA is VH registered and the pilot holds a PPL with night rating for example, he can operate the S-LSA by night, and if the instruments are IFR certified then he can fly IFR with the IFR rating of course. And because of this grey area I’m pretty sure you’ll hear people telling you that it is equally possible with a RAAus registration. Honestly I don’t know where the truth is, the best is probably to ask CASA directly, they may refer you to RAAus.BACK TO TOP 32°) In Australia, what are the potential benefits of LSA v VH aircraft?from what I see, it isn’t LSA vs VH, but more RAAus vs VH. LSA refers to a category of factory built and certified planes with 2 seats and 600Kg MTOW.Personally I have both a LSA license and PPL license and I like it that way because I don’t have to choose, I can fly a MCR Club LSA at 146Kts burning 18L/h with only 2 people on board, or a Twin Engine or Cessna 182S with 4 people on board burning 50-60 L/h when I need to. PPL or LSA license first? It all depends on your personal situation and the time you have. I got my PPL in 6 months, but this is quite rare, depending on the availability of the instructors in the flying school you chose, it may take longer, and I already had an LSA license. Personally I changed to another aeroclub when I saw the initial instructor wasn’t available enough for my project. I think there is a lot of unnecessary theory in the Australian PPL, so if you see this may limit the speed of your progression, you may opt for a LSA license so that you can start flying solo as soon as possible and after that you convert to a PPL. Remember that real experience comes with solo cross countries. As long as you have an instructor beside you, you are not 100% involved in the flight, and as long as you stay around the airfield, you don’t learn anything new. BACK TO TOP 33°) Why is the cruise speed the decisive factor when buying an aircraft?Cruise speed and range is the difference between an aircraft that sits in the hangar and an aircraft that flies. 120Kts isn’t much for a modern plane, and is the bare minimum if you want to do some interesting cross country. Below that, you’ll quickly find that you stay in the vicinity of the airfield and one day you stop flying because you get bored. The range is equally important especially if you go to the outback where refuelling can be an issue. You don’t need to go all the way and back with one tank, but from a remote airfield you want to be able to take off and fly to another airfield where you can refuel before going home, to get that flexibility and peace of mind it is good to have big tanks. A plane is an instrument of freedom, having a slow cruise speed and small range is what makes the difference between a chicken and an eagle, which one goes free?BACK TO TOP 34°) I don’t have a license yet, should I buy the aircraft nonetheless?It makes perfect sense to own the aircraft in which you get your license. Firstly you will carry your first passengers in an aircraft you already have 50+ hours in, so of course you’ll be much more confident. Secondly you’re saving a lot in the hourly rate as you don’t pay for the flying school’s overheads and possibly (often for a non-for-profit body) mismanagements. Buying a DynAero makes even more sense as the depreciation is very low. For example a MCR-4S depreciates 3% on average in France. In Australia a Pickup wouldn’t depreciate during the first years due to the rarity of the aircraft. Compare that with 35% per annum for most of the other brands.BACK TO TOP 35°) Is the MCR-4S type certificated?The MCR4S will be the perfect aircraft for a flying school, once it is certified. And it is going to be ELA1 certified during 2011. EASA has granted (during Frierichshafen) a laissez-passer for Dynaero to start factory-producing MCR4Ss (as opposed to the current kit form), but they will be able to be operated only with 2 people on board, until the full ELA1 certification process is complete. Then the initial MCR4Ss sold will be able to be operated with 4 people on board, so it is worth buying them with the laissez-passer as the restriction will be waived later, there is no need to wait for the ELA1 to be granted before buying the first factory-produced units.BACK TO TOP 36°) In the UK, what are the limitations of kit aircraft?The Dyn’Aviation range is made of S-LSA factory built microlights and kit built planes. So I looked into the CAP 733 to see what sort of limitations we could face in order to short list the aircraft that would provide best profitability.If you are a commercial flying school, then all the aircraft will have some limitations that are difficult to manage in a day-to-day training environment, for example the fact that you can’t operate over congested areas, VFR only, and instruction isn’t permitted as it is considered as aerial work. The S-LSA category (type approved microlight aeroplanes) allows for instruction, glider towing etc. So maybe the MCR Pick Up would prove to be a very good training platform, as it is the case in France at Saint-Yan (see article enclosed). If it is an aeroclub, then there is a little bit more flexibility as instruction isn’t aerial work if the instructors are volunteers, and you can hire the aircraft to club members. You could even look at the new Twin-R to draw more members to your club: http://www.love4aviation.com/Aircraft/Twin-R.html The factory has been allowed by the CAA to build only 3 demonstrators. So if you want a Ready to Fly Twin-R, there is going to be a once in a lifetime opportunity to buy one at the end of this year. Finally if the aircraft is for private use, then you’ve just hit gold as the MCR range provides the best performance on the market for side-by-side aircraft. BACK TO TOP 37°) How the MCR Mountain does compare to the Club?I had a long chat with the pilot of the MCR M in France (Marc Bertolini), he has the tail dragger one. He is an airline pilot but this isn’t of much help when it comes to flying a MCR, less so if in the mountains. Actually that requires skills and experience exactly opposite to what you need to fly an airliner. However it tells us that he is used to assess the qualities of an aircraft in technical terms as opposed to someone with, say, a paragliding background.But what comes very useful for us is that he is also keen on mountain flying for years and has landed on many strips in the French Alps and has flown various conventional mountain aircraft, so this experience is more relevant for us to benchmark the MCR M. This is what he said: Because the fuselage of the MCR 2 seaters range is so short, the centre of gravity is very forward. The consequences of that design are:
When comparing the wings of the ULC and the Club in any case the MCR design gave a high wing load so in turbulence they all behaved well. Personally I have flown the 4S at Darois and the Club in NZ, and there is a subtlety here that I didn’t get, but during a conversation with the owner of the MCR 4S in New Caledonia and then with Marc Bertolini, I could see there is a something about the carbon wing that has to be known: As they are very rigid, they don’t flex in turbulence. Because I flew the 4S in smooth conditions and only the Club in NZ, it didn’t occur to me that some MCR models could be bumpy in turbulence. Marc says that with his ULC wing, when it is bumpy (as often in mountains) he adjusts the seats so as to be lower and avoid hitting the canopy. He says that in that regard the Club would better suited for mountain flying, apparently their STOL capability doesn’t call for the wider wing of the ULC in terms of lift requirement. His model is Tail dragger type, and he says the taxiing is even easier than with a 3 wheel type. The tail dragger undercarriage is usually better for strip flying in case you put a wheel into a hole in the ground: the propeller is better protected. But in the case of the MCR it has 2 significant drawbacks:
So his conclusion is that a MCR Club tricycle undercarriage would be a better mountain aircraft than the MCR M tail dragger. The Club has an additional advantage on the M, it is that it can have long range wing tanks. This allows for a better weight and balance in case you have a Rotax 914 and fly solo: you can put more fuel in the wings instead of filling the frontal fuel tank. In case you are wondering why he bought a MCR M tail dragger, the answer is in the French microlight regulation. To buy a ready-to-fly plane it has to be either type certificated or microlight. And the microlight regulation in France has these 2 requirements: Vs0<35 Kts, MTOW<450 Kf (475Kg with parachute). The Club doesn’t fit the first one, so he would have had to build it himself, which he didn’t want to do. Moreover his wife has a microlight license so by buying the MCR M she can fly it. The Tail dragger undercarriage is the usual configuration for mountain aircraft and additionally it saves weight on the already small 450 Kg MTOW. By comparison NZ pilots are lucky. The Club fits the microlight category because Vs0 is < 45 Kts, and the MTOW is even greater with 544 Kg for the Club. Personally as a sailglider instructor I have done a lot of mountain flying but without landing on mountain strips. As a microlight instructor I have done a lot of strip flying but only with conventional aircraft and I didn’t have the time to get my mountain rating before leaving France (It’s a long rating to get). So I’ve learnt interesting facts with Marc Bertolini, and the most important is that the MCR M can’t be compared to conventional aircraft, it has very distinct characteristics. All conventional mountain aircraft are low performance aircraft, not only they are slow but they are rarely STOL, apart for the Pilatus Porter. The MCR is a high performance aircraft, with STOL capabilities due to its very low weight, double slotted flaps and huge power to weight ratio. The MCR M is even more specific due to its “long” carbon fibre wing and possibly tail dragger undercarriage. BACK TO TOP 38°) Can a kit aircraft be operated under IFR?The MCR-4S is currently a kit aircraft, so it can be operated under IFR depending on the country’s regulation. Usually the rule is that IFR is possible if the instruments are certified. You need to check that with your Civil Aviation Authority.BACK TO TOP 39°) What do you think of the Lycoming 233 or the Continental 0200D series engines?Rotax is the one we have chosen 15 years ago because it is the most reliable solution. During the last 2 years, 2 very well-known companies - Lycoming and Continental - decided to launch a small engine dedicated to LSA business.We are very interested in such a development because it will make the business more competitive in technology and price. First step for us is to install one of these 2 engines - Continental could be the first choice - and make some flights to validate reliability of this solution. In the next 2 years, we will decide whether to offer such a solution as a ready-to-fly. At the same time, we have some customers - kit builders - who want to install these engines themselves. We will offer them the engine installation kit in the next months. BACK TO TOP 40°) What are the differences between factory built and kit aircraft?The differences between factory built and kit are going to be in the price of course, but also in the classification. A factory built is an S-LSA and therefore can be operated for flight training and with a LSA license, whereas the kit one is going to be an experimental and will require a PPL.BACK TO TOP 41°) What are the differences between the MCR-4S, Pickup and Limousine S-LSA?Once upon a time was the MCR-4S. The most economical 4 seater on the market. The airframe was so light that it could carry 4 adults at 135 Kts on a Rotax 912S.At that time in France, the ultralight market was expanding quickly. The French definition for ultralight is a 2 seater of a maximum MTOW of 450Kg without parachute and 475Kg with parachute and a Vs0<35Kts. It appeared possible to use the design of the MCR-4S to make an ultralight, thanks to the big wings of the MCR-4S and the highly efficient double slotted flaps, the Vs0 could be below 35 Kts at 475Kg. The Pickup was born. A enlightened version of the 4S, with a structural MTOW of 600Kg instead of the 750Kg of the 4S and some design changes in order to save on the weight. The 2 back seats were removed to make place for the biggest luggage compartment of any ultralight on the market. In 2010, Love4aviation wanted to have a MCR designed to make the most of the Australian S-LSA regulation. The Australian definition for S-LSA is a 2 seater of a maximum MTOW of 600Kg and Vs0<45Kts. Following the same principle that was applied to design the Pickup, the Limousine S-LSA was based on the MCR-4S. Because the MTOW is 600Kg in Australia instead of 475Kg in France, and the Vs0 is 45Kts instead of 35Kts, the margins to work with were much comfortable to design the Limousine S-LSA compare to the Pickup. Therefore the airframe of the Limousine is exactly the same than the one of the MCR-4S. Nothing has been changed in order to save on weight, and therefore the structural MTOW is still 750Kg despite the regulation limits to 600Kg. The interior is the newly designed one of the Twin-R, which is more comfortable than the MCR-4S, and the “look and feel” is less Spartan, for example the cables and rods don’t show. BACK TO TOP 42°) Do you supply the trailer for the MCR01 ?Click to enlarge Unfortunately the manufacturer doesn’t supply the trailer for the MCR01 anymore. Therefore, you’ll have to get one manufactured locally. You can download the drawing to assist you in the process.BACK TO TOP 43°) Is there a retractable variant of available aircraft (Club, 4s etc)?There is no retractable landing gear variant available because it would increase the selling and maintenance price a great deal without improving much performance. That’s why the SR22 and Cessna 400 have fixed landing gear. On the Tecnam twin P2006, there is a retractable landing gear option: there is no gain in cruise speed but a loss in payload. The landing gear is there only for training purpose.BACK TO TOP 44°) How can I be sure I will get a complete kit?We are used to providing free support and assistance for kit assembly. It might be possible that several elements are missing (most of the time not delivered yet due to production delay), however, if you decide to purchase a kit, our customer support department with a dedicated account manager will take care of that for you.BACK TO TOP 45°) Do you still offer build support in your factory in France? (As at February 2012)Yes we do. Usually it is the fastest way to succeed. However to be honest we are now more into selling ready to fly aircraft.BACK TO TOP 46°) Is the Sportster the same as the Mini-Cruiser?Sportster and MiniCRuiser are sharing the same airframe. The difference bears upon the aileron roll flight control. The Sportster is fitted with flaperons (full span control surface combining the functions of a flap and an aileron), whereas the MiniCRuiser is fitted with separated ailerons and flaps.BACK TO TOP 47°) Is it cheaper to buy the engine from a Rotax distributor in the States?As we are OEM for ROTAX, you'll get exactly the same price than in the US and we can assist you for any warranty issue: that means we can easily get answer spares quicker.BACK TO TOP 48°) Could you explain the difference between Va and design maneuvering speed? This has to do with the MAX speed at which you can safely stall an airplane. During certification, this has to do with forces measured on the elevator (see image). Any speed above Va you would exceed structural limits before reaching a stall (not good). Put in real life terms, we could say that Va (maneuvering speed) is the maximal speed allowed for training with load factors exceeding 2g whereas the Vd (design speed) is the speed for which the airframe has been designed. Vd is always above VNE and therefore should never be reached.BACK TO TOP |