| One of the fastest growing segments of ultralight aviation is
powered parachutes. One of the most innovative powered parachute
manufacturers has to be the people at Para-Ski in Quebec Canada.
Last year they introduced a powered parachute with a retractable
chute. This year they showed up at Sun N Fun with two new designs.
The Para-Ski Voyager 11 is a two seat powered parachute trainer
featuring front and back seating in the unique 4 wheel format that
the Para-Ski line is identified by. The difference between the
Voyager 11 and other two place ppc's is that it not only has 4
wheels it also has 2 engines.
The Voyager 11 is powered by two 447 Rotax engines located to
the rear and on either side of the main airframe. The two engines
put out 80 hp and nearly 500 foot lbs of torque - which equals the
torque output of the single engine Para-Ski powered by the 4
cylinder 100 hp Hirth engine. They two engines also use less fuel
- giving an additional 22 minutes of flight time.
Climb rate is also improved and the cruise speed is increased
to 35 mph. The reason? The two engines are located outside the
airframe, in clean air with more prop diameter, in the two props
than just the one.
The dual rudder system gives very responsive control and in the
event of an engine malfunction the dual rudder system compensates
for the torque allowing full control of the chute.
The Freedom 103 is the first entry into the single place
powered parachute market for Para-ski. The Freedom 103 (which is
part 103 legal in the U.S.) is 250 lbs, and is powered by a 447
Rotax engine. The craft is available with 3 different chutes
depending on pilot weight. The Freedom 103 can be purchased as a
kit taking approximately a week to assemble or ready to fly from
the factory.
For more information contact
Para-Ski International Inc.- Discovery
PO Box 76075 Mascouche,
Quebec Canada J7K 3N9 |
