CH-8 UL/CH8
CH-8 UL
Role Ultralight kitbuilt helicopter
National origin Argentina
Manufacturer Cicaré
First flight 2013
Introduction 2014 [1]
Status Operational
Produced 100 [2]
Number built 100 by July 2021
Developed from Heli-Sport CH-7

The Cicaré CH-8 is a series of ultralight, kit-built helicopters based on a single-seat Argentinian design from the late 1980s.[3] It was later developed into a tandem two-seater, and later into a tandem side by side ULM and remains in production.

Design and development

The piston engine-powered CH-8 ultralight series use the traditional "penny-farthing" layout with two-bladed main and tail rotors. The main rotor is formed from composites and is a teetering, semi-rigid design with 6° of twist. The pod-and-boom fuselage has a carbon fiber and epoxy resin cabin with a long transparent forward-opening canopy. This large windshield allows the pilot to see the tip of the skid making easier to get a ground reference while landing. The frame is built on aeronautical SAE 4130 chrome molybdenum steel tube [1] and welded in spatial reticulated configuration. The steel frame also carries the engine, semi-exposed behind the accommodation and connected to the main rotor shaft by a belt drive. A slender aluminium boom, strengthened by a pair of long struts to the lower fuselage frame, carries both the tail rotor and swept fins. The upper fin is topped with a short horizontal T-shaped tailplate, with small endplate fins, and the lower one ends with a tailskid.

Operational history

100 Helis were built between 2014 and 2021.[2]

Specifications (CH-8)

Data from Jane's All the World Aircraft 2010/11[4]

General characteristics

  • Crew: one
  • Capacity: one passenger
  • Length: 6.920 m (45 ft 4.8 in)
  • Height: 2.7 m (17 ft 8 in)
  • Empty weight: 280 kg (617 lb)
  • Max takeoff weight: 480 kg (1,058 lb)Endurance: 2.5 hrs
  • Powerplant: 1 × Rotax EPA R917 Ti , 101 kW (135 hp)
  • Main rotor diameter: 6.40 m (21 ft 0 in)

Performance

  • Cruise speed: 150 km/h (93 mph, 81 kn)
  • Never exceed speed: 194 km/h (121 mph, 105 kn)
  • Range: 375 km (233 mi, 202 nmi) with standard fuel load
  • Endurance: 2.5 hrs
  • Service ceiling: 4,500 m (14,800 ft) service; hover ceiling out of ground effect is 2,500 m (8,200 ft)
  • Rate of climb: 7 m/s (1,400 ft/min)

See also

References

Notes
  1. 1 2 "Helicóptero Cicaré CH-8 UL. Especificaciones. Foto". Retrieved 2021-07-29.
  2. 1 2 "¡Histórico! Entregado el helicóptero Cicaré N° 100". 29 July 2021. Retrieved 2021-07-29.
  3. ↑ "Heli-Sport". Retrieved 2010-10-28.
  4. ↑ Jackson, Paul (2010). Jane's All the World's Aircraft 2010–11. Coulsdon, Surrey: IHS Jane's. pp. 385–6. ISBN 978-0-7106-2916-6.
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