The Sling 4 Turbo kit aircraft from The Airplane Factory (TAF) of Johannesburg, South Africa, is the four-place follow-on to the Sling 2, which debuted to much acclaim at AirVenture Oshkosh 2009 during an around-the-world journey, with designer Mike Blyth and TAF co-owner James Pittman aboard. Several months of flight tests preceded that westbound circling. Not so two years later, as the Sling 4, incorporating design lessons learned with the Sling 2, came to life, and the TAF team plotted another globe-girdling trip through OSH.

“It was literally a race against time—building the airplane, trying to get it ready and fly off the official test flight hours,” recalls Matt Liknaitzky, president of The Airplane Factory USA, as we performed a walkaround on N981RW, a Sling 4 factory demo, at Paradise City, SnF’s light aircraft HQ. A South African himself, Liknaitzky is a longtime colleague of Blyth’s and was closely involved in the Sling 4’s development.

With a bigger high-lift, high-drag wing and a turbocharged 115 hp Rotax 914 UL vs. the 2’s 100 hp 912 Rotax, the Sling 4’s useful load (992 lbs.) almost equals its empty weight (1,036 lbs.), and it cruises at 125 kts on a very economical 6 gph.

That first Sling 4 wasn’t finished in time for OSH ’09, but Blyth and his son Patrick launched on their circumnavigation anyway soon after. “They departed South Africa when the airplane had, like, 20 hours of flight time,” Liknaitzky says.

Two years later, in 2013, the Sling 4 made its belated OSH debut, via a relatively simple back-and-forth route. (“Round trip” might be confusing in this context.) Fast-forward three years: With TAF USA’s distribution operation in Torrance, California, established and excitement about the model growing, the company was eager to showcase the Sling 4 Turbo to SnF attendees.

Ground Effect

White with gold and red trim, N981RW is a noteworthy aircraft in its own right: the legend on its empennage, “Sling 4-4-40,” signifies this Sling 4’s construction in four days by 40 builders in a well-coordinated effort last year—performed to illustrate its ease of construction.

The primary differences between the Sling 2 and the 4 Turbo are the 4’s larger wings, its upgraded engine and the addition of the center fuselage section for the rear seats. The 4 also has a pair of gull-wing doors in place of the 2’s sliding canopy and windows for the rear seat.

Both Slings have a shark-like, predatory appearance, with a maw of an air scoop on the bottom of the cowl and eyelike air inlets on either side of the prop hub. Overall, the airframe has the high level of finish befitting a totally CAD-designed aircraft. “Everything fits perfectly the first time,” says Liknaitzky. The CAD-based manufacturing also allows TAF “to keep improving the kit and construction very easily,” he says.

TAF prefers to demo the aircraft with at least three people onboard to demonstrate its true four-place capability, but the rear seats had been removed from 1RW back in California to transport SnF display materials, so just Matt and I would be aboard. A six-footer, Matt has spent many hours in the back, and described the rear seating as “extremely spacious.”

The wide, lightly tinted gull-wing doors, anchored to pneumatic struts, make for easy ingress and egress. With front seats pushed forward, there’s plenty of rear-seat entry room—no contorting required. If you’re sitting in front, just step on the seat and climb in. Besides moving fore and aft, the backs of the forward seats are adjustable, as are the rudder pedals. While there’s no vertical seat adjustment, the pilot sits relatively high, and visibility is excellent. Taking stock of the interior, the cabin feels spacious, the layout logical and the appointments comfortable.

“The design started with the cockpit, ergonomically, around the human form,” says Liknaitzky, pointing to the positioning of the throttle, stick and other controls “exactly where the hands come to rest.”

Cockpit Features

The standard panel features a pair of 10″ MGL Avionics iEFIS Challenger Multi-Function Displays (MFDs) facing the pilot and co-pilot positions. (An all-Garmin suite with a G3X Touch is available as an option.) A controller for the electrically operated propeller is at the top of the center panel, flanked by a steam gauge airspeed indicator and altimeter. Below, circuit breakers are set mid-panel over a double row of toggle switches controlling the aircraft’s other electrically driven systems, with flap switch, and choke and cabin heat controls to the left and right, respectively. The red handle of the ballistic recovery chute system (standard in both models) is at the bottom of the center panel. Throttle and parking brake are set on the console between the forward seats, joined to the panel by the intervening pedestal housing the fuel selector.

The propeller control operates the three-bladed composite and constant-speed prop, and works hands-off. It’s typically operated in Auto mode, offering three settings: takeoff, climb and cruise. Takeoff (5800 rpm) is maximum engine rpm; climb (5500 rpm) represents maximum continuous power; and cruise (5000) is the optimum performance/economy setting. Merely select the desired setting, and the electric prop controller does the rest. The rpm can also be set manually; a prop control toggle switch by the flap switch adjusts the rpm up or down, and will stay where set when the prop “hold” is engaged.

The prop can also be feathered, useful either in the event of an engine failure or for feathering on the ground because “people like to see the prop like this,” Liknaitzky says. He engaged the feathering controller, and we watched the propeller blades twist, taking about 14 seconds to cycle from coarse to fine pitch. A green light on the controller illuminates when fully feathered. “It looks like a turboprop,” Liknaitzky says approvingly of the feathered blades, now just thin black lines from the cockpit.

Shut the gull-wing doors before startup. They pull down easily on their struts into locking position. Turn on the EFIS, powered by a secondary battery; it contains the checklists and tests the other systems as they come online. Engage the toggles for the master, main and aux fuel pumps, electric prop controller and other electrical systems. This being the first flight of the day, Liknaitzky advised using the choke to enrich the mixture. Any concern that that signified an engine that needs coddling evaporated as the Rotax fired up as if it had paused in mid-thought.

Flying The Sling

The flight line at Paradise City is a constant blur of motion, reminiscent of World War I airfield scenes with ground crews pushing and pulling aircraft around and performing last-minute inspections before engines are started and aircraft join a line of aircraft waiting to climb into the endless parade of light aircraft doing circuits in the pattern or heading out for demo flights. We joined the procession, following the visual commands of wand-waving ground crewmembers.

With nosewheel steering and differential braking, ground handling is firm and highly maneuverable; we paused on the way to the run-up area and Liknaitzky performed a donut 360-degree turn.

During the run-up, the prop is switched from Auto to Manual, the pitch changed from coarse to fine and back, and Auto is re-engaged. A green prop control light indicates proper configuration for flight. All other run-up items are GA standard (with the exception of the 4000 rpm engine speed). Set one notch of flaps for takeoff.

Our plan was to fly out to the open expanse south of LAL’s airspace for some airwork, then to Lakeland South, the nearby turf strip airpark, before returning to Paradise City.

The Rotax 914’s full 115 hp is available for a maximum of five minutes continuous use, and always used for takeoff. To engage the extra boost, advance the throttle full forward, make sure the engine lights are all green, then pull up on the trigger within reach on the forward portion of the throttle, and advance it past the 100 hp detent to its stop. The extra 15 horsepower makes a big difference in performance, especially in high/hot conditions. Keep in mind, too, this is a turbocharged engine, and full power is available into the teens; it produces max continuous 100 hp up to 15,000 feet.

Rotation speed is 60 kts, and takeoff roll is about 700 feet (on asphalt) at max weight. With two onboard, using soft/short-field technique for Paradise City’s turf, we were airborne quickly. Liknaitzky recommends climbing out at 75 to 80 kts for optimum forward visibility and a comfortable climb angle, yielding an 800 to 900 fpm climb. We scooted out from under LAL’s controlled airspace at 400 feet before putting the propeller back in climb mode and ascending to 3,000 feet.

In straight and level flight, with the propeller set to cruise and full power, we exceeded 120 kts indicated. If you want to get somewhere faster, “just leave the prop in climb [5500 rpm] the whole time,” Liknaitzky advises. Though the airplane is noisier at that setting, it’s not a sound level a pair of decent noise-cancelling headsets can’t handle. With an autopilot standard, and the option to equip for IFR, the Sling 4 makes a great touring platform.

But the Sling 4 distinguishes itself most in hand-flying, where it feels like a fun four-seat fighter jet as the well-balanced stick is yanked around. Gamboling through steep turns and nudging the bottom of the envelope in slow flight, it exhibits excellent control harmony and ease of command. Yet, as responsive as it is, the fat wing ensures the airplane remains docile and forgiving. The low stall speeds (47 kts clean; 42 kts in the landing configuration with full flaps) provide another layer of safety. We attempted both power-on and power-off stalls, but as Liknaitzky predicted, with no passengers in back, the Sling simply mushed downward straight ahead when reaching the stall; with rear-seat passengers, it will enter a series of oscillation stalls until recovery, rather than pulling off to one side, he says.

Pattern operations are completely conventional. Full flaps are used for landing, dialed in on the flap selector as desired on the way down. Recommended approach is 75 kts, but with its low stall speed, 60 to 65 kts is perfectly acceptable for squeezing into tight landing spots—landing distance is 500 feet, and the gear are designed to handle the types of dodgy strips you’d expect to encounter when flying around the world. The Sling 4 isn’t a floater, and the wheels plant authoritatively. For touch-and-goes, push the throttle full forward, check the engine lights, then pull the trigger, goose the power up, and away you go. The destination is entirely up to you. With the Sling 4, the whole planet is yours.

Senior Editor James Wynbrandt is a multi-engine, instrument-rated pilot and an award-winning author of books and articles. He flies a Mooney M20K 252.

Sling 4 Turbo Specifications

The post Sling 4 Turbo appeared first on Plane & Pilot Magazine.

Propeller: Three-blade Airmaster 72″ composite

Fuel capacity: 46 gal.

Fuel burn: 6 gph

Range @ 75% power with 45 min. reserves: 780 nm

Max gross weight: 2,024 lbs.

Standard empty weight: 1,036 lbs.

Maximum useful load: 992 lbs.

Wingspan: 32 ft. 8 in.

Length: 25 ft. 3 in.

Height: 8 ft.

Cockpit width: 43.8 in.

Limit loads: +4, -2

Wing loading: 15.1 lbs. sq. ft.

Power loading: 17.6 lbs. per hp

Takeoff ground roll: 700 ft.

Rate of climb, sea level: 750 fpm

Maximum allowable speed (Vne): 135 KIAS

Cruise speed 75% power @ 6,000 ft.: 120 KTAS

Maximum operating altitude: 15,000 ft.

Landing distance: 500 ft.

Stall speed (clean): 47 KCAS

Stall speed (full flaps): 42 KCAS

Max. demonstrated crosswind component: 15 KCAS

Check out our Sling 4 Turbo pilot report.

The post The Airplane Factory Sling 4 Turbo Specifications appeared first on Plane & Pilot Magazine.

What can you do with a Sling? In today’s world, an aircraft needs to be fun, stable, efficient and—most of all—useful. Gone are the days when pilots would look only at cruise speed and climb performance when considering a new aircraft. Today’s pilots are different from the former fighter jocks of the ’60s and ’70s. More than anything, they want to know what an airplane is capable of and what it can be used for. They have families and busy careers, and they need aircraft that can be used as tools for travel without costing a fortune to operate. But, they’re still aviators and want something that speaks to them emotionally and fuels their passion for flying. It’s there, in the realm of almost impossible expectations, where the South African Sling light-sport aircraft stands out.

The Airplane Factory’s Sling lives in the passionate “pilot’s airplane” corner of the aviation spectrum. With its sliding canopy, all-metal construction and nimble handling, the Sling feels like a lot more airplane than it is, and it touches pilots in the same place where P-51s and fighter jets do—the senses. Though it’s neither a warbird nor a fighter jet, it feels like one, and in today’s world of glass cockpits and one-touch autopilots, that’s a huge selling point for pilots who love to fly for the thrill and adventure of it.

My editor says I fall in love with everything I fly, and while she may be right in a general sense (is there really a “bad” airplane?), this little beauty left its mark on my soul when I flew one three years ago. Like falling in love on a faraway vacation then having to go home, I’ve been anxious to fly the Sling again and see if my first impressions were just romantic longings or true perceptions of an exceptional airplane.

The only way to evaluate an airplane from a practical sense is to take an adventure in it. After all, real pilots will do just that. They won’t sit with a pad on their knee jotting down fpm climb rates or true-versus-indicated airspeeds, or noting clean and dirty stall speeds. Pilots want to know what this airplane can do in a practical sense, and I’m happy to pretend I own it.

One thing that immediately sets this airplane apart is the gauntlet of globe-trotting journeys it has endured. To prove the aircraft to themselves and the world, Mike Blyth and James Pitman, The Airplane Factory’s founders, flew the production prototype Sling 2 around the world in 2009. While naysayers said the two were crazy to fly an LSA with a Rotax engine over the most desolate parts of our planet, the Sling performed flawlessly, flying numerous legs over 2,000 nm (3,600 km) over the world’s oceans, jungles and deserts. To further prove the reliability of their design, the pair flew a four-place Sling around the world—this time from west to east—even flying a nonstop leg from Brazil to Cape town without a hitch.

Airplane Factory President, Matt Liknaitzky, and Sling owner Craig Spirko compare performance of the fuel-injected and standard Sling.

Mojave Desert Adventure
For today’s adventure, Matt Liknaitzky, president of the Sling’s main distributor in the U.S. in Torrance, Calif., and I will fly a real-world mission to the remote El Mirage Dry Lake in the Mojave Desert, near Adelanto, Calif. El Mirage is a special place: a remote, flat playa nearly 12 miles long and several miles wide. The dry lake formed from an undrained basin. Silt and clay are deposited into this basin during periods of heavy rain. When the “lake” dries from evaporation, a hardpan dry lakebed is left.

The lake’s hardpack clay surface has a compacted chalk-like feel—like compressed talcum powder—that’s so forgiving for landing an aircraft that I’m suddenly enlightened as to why the U.S. Air Force did so much testing here during the 1950s and ’60s. Landing an airplane on this playa is intoxicating, as it combines the best of both dirt fields and grass strips. The lake lacks much dust, and fine cracking on its surface resembles a well-made, crisp brownie. It’s a perfect surface. Weekends bring a wide range of enthusiasts here—from land racers to ultralight pilots to model rocket builders. During the week, it resembles the moon, and the myriad of films, commercials and print ads created here convey the alien nature of this place.

Controlled by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), El Mirage Dry Lake offers an unusual hardpack surface that attracts aviators. Aircraft operations are limited to weekdays.

Liknaitzky and I will fly the Sling from John Wayne Airport (SNA) in the heart of Southern California’s busiest airspace—and itself a frequent entry in the top 10 busiest commercial airports in the nation. We’ll get a chance to push the Sling’s capabilities and avionics, using them to thread our way through this hive of aerial activity and on to the harsh and desolate environs of the Mojave Desert. We’ll stay VFR—as many Sling owners would—and meet up with a second two-place Sling piloted by Craig Spirko, an entertainment industry professional. Scouting a location like this might be something Spirko would do in his job, and though I had landed at El Mirage before, this would be the first time for both of them.

The Sling itself is a fascinating airplane. The design was conceived in 2006 by Blyth, a South African ultralight pioneer. His passion for flying instilled in him a desire for an LSA that had better performance and handling characteristics than anything else out there. Together with outdoorsman Pitman and aeronautical designer Jean d’Assonville—both also from South Africa—the team labored for five years toward their goal of bringing such an airplane to life. The result is an all-metal, stressed-skin, riveted, light-sport aircraft known for its proven durability, reliability and ease of construction. Made with tempered-grade 6061-T6 aluminum, the Sling’s recognizable hallmarks are its sliding bubble canopy (affording amazing visibility), composite landing gear and squat, fighter-like stance. If you squint a little, it looks like a cousin of the famous T-37 “Tweet” tandem military trainer jet.

The Sling comes in two variations: the two-seat original and the four-seat Sling 4. Both are powered by the tank-like Rotax engine. The Sling 2 we were flying was fitted with the new Rotax 912 iS fuel-injected engine, though the standard Rotax 912 ULS is what I flew during my first Sling experience, and both offer spry 100 hp performance. While both engines are fuel misers (the 912 ULS sips a mere 5 gph), the main attraction to the 912 iS is an unheard of fuel flow of about 3.8 gph at cruise. Meanwhile, the Sling 4 is powered by the turbo-charged Rotax 914 series, which offers better performance at high altitudes, along with 115 hp. Both include an optional airframe parachute system (a $6,837 add-on).

Flying The Sling
Lowering myself into the Sling’s surprisingly spacious cockpit, I’m greeted by the control sticks and adjustable seats. Unlike many LSAs, these seats are substantial and would be comfortable on the long hauls the airplane is known for. The simple panel is adorned with dual MGL Avionics touch-screen MFDs. Also based at Torrance Airport, MGL was the first company on the noncertified market with a full-color EFIS. Their newest touch screen is pretty amazing and has more than enough capability for the Sling, with engine monitoring, 3D terrain, weather, radio and transponder control, and autopilot, along with a beautiful moving-map GPS. The Rotax 912 iS features FADEC (full authority digital engine control), so performance management is a single-lever operation. The “finger brakes” feature takes a little getting used to with its console-mounted lever (buyers can get toe brakes instead for an additional cost).

Using a sliding canopy is just plain fun and brings out the inner fighter pilot in you. From a practical standpoint, it provides great ventilation and visibility, though it also adds another item to be aware of before takeoff. With the canopy locked and the Sling accelerating quickly down the runway, takeoff is quick. One thing to look out for on the Sling is a slight tendency to porpoise if you don’t keep the stick back on rotation. Its sensitive pitch control, though, is a thing of beauty once the Sling is airborne.

Climbing out, I experienced a rush of emotion as I remember why the Sling won me over so completely three years ago: its control harmony and feel. You fly the Sling with your fingertips and wrist, not your arm. Everything you want it to do, you just exert the slightest pressure on the stick, and the Sling obeys. It’s not a twitchy airplane like a Pitts, or even approaching unstable, like say, an Extra. It’s a forgiving platform with the sweetest control response you can imagine. Coupled with that wraparound canopy and the seat position, and it’s a mini-fighter for the masses. If this airplane doesn’t put a smile on your face, you don’t love flying.

For the nitty-gritty crowd, we were seeing climb rates of about 850 fpm, but we were fully loaded on a sweltering day. Cruising at 7,500 feet, our fuel flow was pegged between 3.7 and 3.9 gph, and we were indicating 110 knots most of the way. Weaving around the SoCal airspace, I’m reminded about the long trips this airplane has made. Full of fuel (38.6 gallons useable), this airplane will go nearly 10 hours averaging 115 knots, and the non-injected Rotax will go eight hours at the same clip. It was made for long, cross-country hauls.

The Sling is equipped with MGL Avionics’ 10-inch touch-screen EFIS with moving map GPS, full AHRS, customizable screens and complete engine monitoring.

No airplane is perfect, of course, and the Sling pays for its durable design with nominal carrying capacity. With a useful load of 500 pounds, heavier pilots need to make trade-offs on range. The truth is that few people need eight- or 10-hour range, so a couple of 200-pound folks could go three to four hours with a light suitcase. I’m a small guy, and I calculated my wife and I could travel six hours with 75 pounds of baggage easily. It’s certainly not a pickup truck, but for two people, it fits the bill well enough.

Approaching El Mirage Dry Lake, we pass over Adelanto Airport (52CL), where General Atomics and NASA continue to do flight testing and research on unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), including the Predator and Altair drones. Nearby are Edwards Air Force Base, the Lockheed Skunk Works and Mojave Spaceport. The Sling feels right at home.

Both Slings make a final pass to make sure the lake is clear of people and machines, then set up for the approach. The Sling is a docile creature and settles into 70 knots with flaps down on final. The lakebed extends as far as the eye can see in a disorienting swath of nothingness in every direction. There’s nothing to break up the surface of the playa, and we both lose depth perception. It’s the same effect as landing a seaplane on undisturbed, calm water. Looking to the nearby Shadow Mountains, we regain a slight sense of where we are and manage to touch down at the right attitude and speed. Landing on this moonscape isn’t like anywhere else.

The Sling can be purchased as an S-LSA certified factory-built aircraft, or as a homebuilt E-LSA (experimental), or as an amateur-built aircraft. The E-LSA has a maximum gross weight of 1,320 pounds to fit the LSA category, while the amateur-built version is 1,540 pounds, though both aircraft are identical. S-LSA aircraft are assembled in Torrance, Calif., after having been manufactured at the Sling factory in Tedderfield Airpark in Johannesburg, South Africa. After assembly, the Slings can either be flown or shipped to owners in the U.S., Canada or Mexico. A national dealer network is growing that will support the aircraft and their owners. The ready-to-fly, factory-assembled Sling has a base price of $135,000, with the fuel-injected Rotax 912 iS engine adding another $10,312 to the price. The Sling 4 only comes as a kit for the homebuilder with a price tag of $44,297 for everything minus the engine. The Sling 2 kit is $32,590 plus the engine.

The Sling will fulfill the needs of most pilots while still maintaining that sense of adventure and thrill that attracted them to flying in the first place. It should have competitors shaking in their boots, specifically because it’s such a joy to fly, but offers the features of a much larger airplane. Sitting on the El Mirage playa with the sun glinting off its brilliant white exterior, the Sling looks fun just standing there. And fun is what this airplane is all about.

The post A Fighter For The Masses appeared first on Plane & Pilot Magazine.

Sling
SPECIFICATIONS
Engine:	Rotax 912 ULS or Rotax 912 iS
Power:	100 hp
Fuel:	Min. 91 OCT auto fuel or 100LL avgas
Propeller:	Whirlwind 70-inch 3-blade composite
PERFORMANCE
Cruise Speed (kts.):	115
Fuel Burn:	912 ULS = 5 gph, 912 iS = 3.9 gph
Rate Of Climb (fpm):	900
Max Range (nm):	800+
Fuel Capacity (gals.):	38.6 useable (two tanks, 19.3 useable)
Takeoff Roll (ft.):	500
Landing Roll (ft.):	300
Wing Loading (lbs./ft.):	12.1
Max. Load Factors:	+4 G, -2 G
Service Ceiling (ft.):	12,000
DIMENSIONS
Wingspan (ft.):	30.1
Length (ft.):	22.9
Height (ft.):	8.2
Cabin Width (in.):	44
CAPACITY/LOAD
Standard Empty Weight (lbs.):	796
Max. Takeoff Weight (lbs.):	1320
Max. Useful Load (lbs.):	524
Max. Baggage (lbs.):	77
PRICE
Sling 2 Ready-To-Fly (base):	$135,000
Sling 2 Kit:	$32,590 (without engine), $79,113 (complete aircraft & avionics)
Sling 4 Kit:	$44,297 (without engine), $108,417 (complete aircraft & avionics)

The post Sling appeared first on Plane & Pilot Magazine.

Sliding the bubble canopy forward with a satisfying “thunk,” I looked at the panorama around me—I could see our island destination in the distance—and took in the smell of fresh leather. The stick felt like an old friend, and the MGL Avionics EFIS fired up to the “Engine Start” checklist. A flip of a couple of toggle switches and a twist of the key, and the engine sprang to life like an eager student on the first day of school. This miniature fighter plane was ready for adventure, and my copilot conveyed an enthusiastic, “Excellent!” as we taxied out.

“Excellent” is a word that a lot of people are using when it comes to this aircraft. Meet the Sling, a brand-new light-sport aircraft (LSA) that has been turning heads since 2006 when Mike Blyth and James Pitman began developing it in Johannesburg, South Africa. Blyth was an early pioneer of microlight flying in South Africa, and had already designed and built several aircraft. He set out to build a stronger, better-flying full-sized aircraft, so he formed a company—The Airplane Factory—to do it. Completed from concept to certification in a miraculous three years, the Sling is the result of Blyth and Pitman’s voracious appetite for adventure and for what they term “bringing the spirit of aviation to the masses.”

My copilot this day was Matt Liknaitzky, president of The Airplane Factory, the sole U.S. Dealer of the Sling, based out of Torrance airport in Southern California—famed pilot Bob Hoover’s home airport. This fact is significant because of the pioneering spirit the entire Sling crew—from designers to dealers—brings to this design. A truly fresh aircraft, this little tiger really is different.

Matt Liknaitzky and Marc Lee demo the Sling 2 over Southern California’s coastline.

Liknaitzky met me at John Wayne Airport in Orange County to shake out the Sling and introduce me to its charms. It was imperative that we take advantage of textbook-perfect California skies, so we launched for the idyllic paradise that is Catalina Island, just 30 miles off the gold-coast beaches that lie directly below the departure path at John Wayne. John Wayne, the actor, lived on those same beaches and hated the noise from departing jets. He fought the airport for years, yet they named it after him. I was considering that irony as we winged our way over Balboa Bay toward the “Airport in the Sky,” as it’s known. All that ocean would give me plenty of time to get a feel for the sleek Sling.

The big news is that the Sling (officially called the “Sling 2” for “2-place”) just received its official S-LSA Airworthiness certificate in the U. S. (though it’s been selling around the world since 2009). The certification makes the Sling 2 the 125th certified LSA available in the U.S. Those of us who remember aviation in the stagnant early ’80s when there were no new airplanes around can hardly fathom 125 LSA out there to choose from—like some crazed, self-service Las Vegas buffet. And the Sling has been famously successful; more than 60 airplanes have been delivered worldwide, with orders to date surpassing 100. In addition to the factory-built certified models, the Sling LSA will be available as an E-LSA (and an experimental amateur-built) kit. The factory at Tedderfield Airpark in the Gauteng Province of South Africa employs 75 people and turns out five Slings per month in a ready-to-fly state, and even more kits. With those kinds of numbers, the Sling’s success in the U.S. looks better than promising.

The stick felt like an old friend, and the MGL Avionics fired up to the “Engine Start” checklist. A flip of a couple of toggle switches and a twist of the key, and the engine sprang to life like an eager student…

There’s so much different about the Sling that it’s hard to know where to begin. The first thing most people notice is that the airplane doesn’t look like an LSA. To me, a lot of LSA look spindly and not very substantive. They betray the ultralight roots they came from. But, the Sling looks decidedly formidable, probably due to its construction. The Sling is a stressed-skin, semi-monocoque aircraft, made to ASTM standards from tempered 6061-T6 aluminum punched precisely using CNC machines. The end result is that it’s made like a “real” airplane, and it looks agile but not dainty.

A sliding bubble canopy on the Sling LSA offers excellent visibility when airborne. The cockpit features center control sticks and an MGL avionics system with two EFIS displays.

The real magic of the Sling comes from flying it. Easily, the Sling’s most impressive quality is its maneuverability and handling. The controls are an extension of your mind, with only the slightest finger pressure necessary to execute the maneuver in your head. But it’s not twitchy or too light—an ailment some highly maneuverable aircraft and LSA suffer from. The Sling is a superbly balanced aircraft, and would be considered a “pilot’s airplane” if that term hadn’t been worn to dust by marketing people for airplanes that don’t come close. The Sling inspires you to fly it.

To that end, Liknaitzky tells me that Blyth and his engineers spent an extra year perfecting the handling qualities of the airplane. These guys are either airplane geeks or true geniuses to spend that kind of sweat and money getting the feel just right, but they’ve succeeded masterfully. The direct-linkage ailerons contribute to the positive feel of the controls, while small winglets provide longitudinal stability and better control in turbulence.

There, above the sparkling-blue Pacific Ocean, the second of the Sling’s ample charms became evident: its visibility. First, the “cool factor” of a sliding bubble canopy just can’t be beat. It’s what we all imagined as kids when we played “airplane,” and no door, hatch or window will ever come close to the cachet of a sliding canopy. The Sling’s canopy brings to mind the Grumman Tiger of old, albeit with modern design and performance. The view from under the clear bubble is breathtaking, though it gets hot quickly under a direct sun, which California is famous for. Liknaitzky said a type of curtain was being considered for production aircraft. It definitely needs it.

The Sling 2 is powered by the Rotax 912 ULS engine—a high-revving sewing machine of a motor with a smooth power curve, rated just under 100 hp. The Rotax is certified for 5800 rpm for a maximum of five minutes, after which cruise power can be set anywhere between 4,800 and 5,500 rpm, yielding a respectable 110 knots. The Warp Drive three-bladed composite prop gave us about 800 fpm climb on a warm SoCal day. The Sling’s landing gear is made of composites, and she comes with the option of an airframe parachute system—a nice touch for an LSA.

Another of the Sling’s big draws is its lack of thirst. At cruise, the Sling sips fuel at 4.5 gph, so with 38.6 usable gallons of fuel on board, seven hours’ flying time and 800 nm is realistic, if your bladder can hold out that long. Its useful load of 524 pounds means you can carry 293 pounds of people and baggage on a full fuel load or play with different configurations of fuel and payload to meet your mission.

Adventurers at heart, Sling company founders Blyth and Pitman wanted to prove to the world that their design wasn’t only fun to fly and useful, but that it was a robust cross-country machine worthy of comparison with any standard category GA airplane. In July of 2009, the two intrepid pilots set out to fly the first prototype Sling 2 around the globe. They did just that, flying for 40 days and 40 nights, and passing through Oshkosh as if to rub in the fact that this airplane is something to contend with. The Sling performed flawlessly, with the only modification being four plastic fuel cans they propped up in the baggage area with some plastic tubing and a pump to feed the standard tanks as they emptied. The airplane had two additional wing tanks, with 50 gallons per side. Blyth and Pitman flew 2,000-nm legs over the world’s oceans, deserts and mountains, circumnavigating the globe in the Sling.

In April of last year, the Sling team presented their “5577” project. The brilliant scheme had a team of five men and five women build a Sling from a kit in seven days, then fly it to Poland from South Africa in seven days to deliver it to its new owner. The idea was to prove to the world that relatively inexperienced people could put this aircraft together in an unheard-of short time. The project was a huge success, drawing fans to the Aircraft Factory website to watch the build progress and subsequent odyssey to Poland.

As if the company had anything left to prove, they developed a four-seat version of the Sling, calling it the “Sling 4,” and flew it around the globe in July of 2011. This time Blyth and Pitman added Director and Production manager, Jean d’Assonville, who’s an aeronautical engineer, designer, and pilot. Once again, the flight went famously, concluding with an arduous, non-stop leg from Brazil to Cape Town. The team had proven that the Sling handles just about anything.

As we continued our over-water jaunt to Catalina, Matt Liknaitzky had me try some maneuvers to showcase the Sling’s handling qualities. Also from South Africa, Liknaitzky has a ready smile and uses the word “excellent” in various capacities. I like him instantly since he’s a confirmed stick-and-rudder guy like me and owns his own Christen Eagle biplane that he uses for aerobatic competitions. We were enjoying all the sights and sensations that come with flying as he explained the plan for the Sling in the U.S. market.

“We plan to take the Aircraft Factory concept and expand it at Torrance Airport,” explained Liknaitzky. “We plan on offering training, dealer support and, eventually, an entire assembly facility where we assemble the airplanes.” The reaction to the Sling, says Liknaitzky, has been overwhelmingly positive. “People just love how it flies,” he enthuses. I agree completely.

In place of toe or heel brakes, the Sling employs a lever on the quadrant next to the throttle.

The Sling has some quirks that stamp it as definitely not an American design. These oddities give the airplane personality, though they take some getting used to. I didn’t like the flap switch. It’s just a plain toggle switch that you have to hold up or down while either watching a diminutive graphic on the MGL Avionics display, or by craning your neck to look at the flaps themselves. A redesign might be just the ticket.

The Sling doesn’t have toe—or heel—brakes. Instead, there’s a lever on the quadrant next to the throttle. It takes some getting used to, though I have to admit I was accustomed to it by the time we landed back at John Wayne. I still found myself trying to press on the top of the pedals just like a car passenger pushing on what I call the “chicken brake” when they feel nervous.

The MGL Avionics EFIS was nice to work with. It, too, takes some getting used to, but the two EFIS displays contain all the information you need for situational awareness and navigation. It combines a PFD, MFD, engine monitor, fuel computer, GPS navigator, an autopilot and an interface for a multitude of other devices.

Plane & Pilot editor Jessica Ambats laughed a bit when I gave her my reaction to the Sling. “Your favorite airplane is always the one you just flew!” she jibed. She had a point, but I realized that we live in a time when new aircraft designs are fantastic when compared to the stuff coming off the line back in the heyday of GA aircraft production after WWII. Today’s aircraft are difficult to not like, though each has its own personality and allure. Still, this time was different. The Sling got to me more than any aircraft I’ve flown in the past several years. In fact, I contacted Liknaitzky just hours after our flight, asking him about the availability of the Sling for rental. Like an addict, I couldn’t wait to get my Sling fix.

Proof of its appeal comes in the form of the Facebook groups, fan sites and blogs dedicated to the airplane. To say it puts “fun” into flying is a sort of neutered expression, because the word is applied to everything. People say running is “fun,” and I can’t stand it. So I’ll just say that flying the Sling gives you an enormous feeling of pleasure and satisfaction. Its handling gets your heart racing with possibilities, while its capability and strength make it a practical airplane for “real” missions, like circumnavigating the globe with your best flying companion. I loved the airplane; no apologies needed.

For more details about the Sling LSA, visit www.airplanefactory.com.

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Sling 2
Base price:	$125,000
Engine make/model:	Rotax 912 ULS
Propeller:	Warp Drive, 70-inch three-blade composite
Gross weight (lbs.):	1320
Empty weight (lbs.):	796
Useful load (lbs.):	524
Usable fuel (gals.):	537
Wingspan:	38.6
Fuel type:	91 OCT auto gas or 100LL avgas
Payload full fuel (lbs.):	286
Wingspan (ft.):	30
Overall length (ft.):	22.89
Overall height (ft.):	8.2
Cabin width (in.):	44
Wing area (sq. ft.):	127.5
Wing loading (lbs./sq. ft.):	12.10
PERFORMANCE
Cruise speed (kts.):	109
Fuel consumption, max (gph):	4.5
Cruise speed, 75% (kts.):	95
Fuel consumption, 75% (gph):	3.5
Best rate of climb, SL (fpm):	800
Vs (kts.):	45
Service ceiling (ft.):	12,000

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