The Anglin J6 Karatoo is an Australian

ultralight Ultralight aviation (called microlight aviation in some countries) is the flying of lightweight, 1- or 2-seat fixed-wing aircraft. Some countries differentiate between weight-shift control and conventional three-axis control aircraft with aile ...

and

light-sport aircraft A light-sport aircraft (LSA), or light sport aircraft, is a category of small, lightweight aircraft that are simple to fly. LSAs tend to be heavier and more sophisticated than ultralight (aka "microlight") aircraft, but LSA restrictions on weigh ...

that was designed by Jesse Anglin and introduced in 1982. Over the years the J6 Karatoo has been produced by several different manufacturers, including Amax Engineering of

Donvale, Victoria Donvale is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Manningham local government area A local government area (LGA) is an administrative division of a country t ...

, Skyway Aircraft and is currently built by Serenity Aviation of Australia. The aircraft is supplied as plans or as a kit for amateur construction.Downey, Julia: ''1999 Kit Aircraft Directory'', Kitplanes, Volume 15, Number 12, December 1998, page 60. Primedia Publications. ISSN 0891-1851Cliche, Andre: ''Ultralight Aircraft Shopper's Guide'' 8th Edition, page B-90. Cybair Limited Publishing, 2001. Purdy, Don: ''AeroCrafter - Homebuilt Aircraft Sourcebook, Fifth Edition'', page 114. (Benicia: BAI Communications) 15 July 1998.

Design and development

The aircraft features a

strut-braced In aeronautics, bracing comprises additional structural members which stiffen the functional airframe to give it rigidity and strength under load. Bracing may be applied both internally and externally, and may take the form of struts, which act in ...

high-wing A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft configuration with a single mainplane, in contrast to a biplane or other types of multiplanes, which have multiple wings. A monoplane has inherently the highest efficiency and lowest drag of any wing config ...

, a two-seats-in-

side-by-side configuration Tandem, or in tandem, is an arrangement in which two or more animals, machines, or people are lined up one behind another, all facing in the same direction. ''Tandem'' can also be used more generally to refer to any group of persons or objects w ...

enclosed cockpit with doors, fixed

conventional landing gear Conventional landing gear, or tailwheel-type landing gear, is an aircraft Landing gear, undercarriage consisting of two main wheels forward of the Center of gravity of an aircraft, center of gravity and a small wheel or skid to support the tail ...

and a single engine in

tractor configuration In aviation, a tractor configuration is a propeller-driven fixed-wing aircraft with its engine mounted with the propeller in front, so that the aircraft is "pulled" through the air. This is the usual configuration; the pusher configuration ...

. The aircraft

fuselage The fuselage (; from the French language, French ''fuselé'' "spindle-shaped") is an aircraft's main body section. It holds Aircrew, crew, passengers, or cargo. In single-engine aircraft, it will usually contain an Aircraft engine, engine as wel ...

is made from welded

4130 steel 41xx steel is a family of SAE steel grades, as specified by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE). Alloying elements include chromium and molybdenum, and as a result these materials are often informally referred to as chromoly steel (common va ...

tubing, with its wings usually made with a wooden structure, all covered in doped

aircraft fabric Aircraft fabric covering is a term used for both the material used and the process of covering aircraft open structures. It is also used for reinforcing closed plywood structures. The de Havilland Mosquito is an example of this technique, as are ...

. Its span wing employs a

Clark Y Clark Y is the name of a particular airfoil profile, widely used in general purpose aircraft designs, and much studied in aerodynamics over the years. The profile was designed in 1922 by Virginius E. Clark using thickness distribution of the Germa ...

airfoil An airfoil (American English) or aerofoil (British English) is a streamlined body that is capable of generating significantly more Lift (force), lift than Drag (physics), drag. Wings, sails and propeller blades are examples of airfoils. Foil (fl ...

, has an area of and optional flaps. The wing is supported by V-struts and

jury struts In aeronautics, bracing comprises additional structural members which stiffen the functional airframe to give it rigidity and strength under load. Bracing may be applied both internally and externally, and may take the form of struts, which act in ...

and is constructed with marine plywood

ribs The rib cage or thoracic cage is an endoskeletal enclosure in the thorax of most vertebrates that comprises the ribs, vertebral column and sternum, which protect the vital organs of the thoracic cavity, such as the heart, lungs and great vessels ...

and a D-cell

leading edge The leading edge is the part of the wing that first contacts the air;Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Terms, third edition'', page 305. Aviation Supplies & Academics, 1997. alternatively it is the foremost edge of an airfoil sectio ...

, although a metal wing was under development. Wing folding for ground transport or storage is optional. Floats for water operations are an option. The Karatoo can accept engines in the range of , depending on the model. Engines used include the

Rotax 503 The Rotax 503 is a , inline 2-cylinder, two-stroke engine, two-stroke aircraft engine, built by Rotax, BRP-Rotax GmbH & Co. KG of Austria for use in ultralight aircraft.Raisner, William: ''LEAF catalog'', pp. 6-105. Leading Edge Airfoils, 1 ...

and the

Rotax 582 The Rotax 582 is a two-stroke cycle, two-stroke, two-cylinder, rotary intake valve, oil-in-fuel or oil injection pump, liquid-cooled, gear reduction-drive aircraft engine manufactured by Rotax, BRP-Rotax GmbH & Co. KG. It is for use in non-ce ...

two-stroke A two-stroke (or two-stroke cycle) engine is a type of internal combustion engine that completes a power cycle with two strokes of the piston, one up and one down, in one revolution of the crankshaft in contrast to a four-stroke engine which re ...

s as well as the

Rotax 912UL The Rotax 912 is a flat-four engine, horizontally-opposed four-cylinder, naturally-aspirated, four-stroke engine, four-stroke aircraft engine with a Propeller speed reduction unit, reduction gearbox. It features Radiator (engine cooling), l ...

, the

Rotax 912ULS The Rotax 912 is a horizontally-opposed four-cylinder, naturally-aspirated, four-stroke aircraft engine with a reduction gearbox. It features liquid-cooled cylinder heads and air-cooled cylinders. Originally equipped with carburetors, ...

Jabiru 2200 The Jabiru 2200 is a lightweight naturally aspirated, pushrod four-stroke, flat four, air-cooled aircraft engine produced by Jabiru Aircraft. Design and development The conventional direct-drive engine is fitted with an alternator, silencers, ...

Subaru EA engine The Subaru EA engine is a series of automobile internal combustion engines manufactured by Subaru, a division of Fuji Heavy Industries. All EA series engines are of a flat-4 design, and have always been water cooled. Design and history Prior t ...

Continental C-90 The Continental C90 and O-200 are a family of air-cooled, horizontally opposed, four-cylinder, direct-drive aircraft engines of 201 in3 (3.29 L) displacement, producing between 90 and 100 horsepower (67 and 75 kW).''Federal Aviation Admini ...

and the Continental O-200A

four-stroke A four-stroke (also four-cycle) engine is an internal combustion (IC) engine in which the piston completes four separate strokes while turning the crankshaft. A stroke refers to the full travel of the piston along the cylinder, in either directio ...

powerplants. In 1988 the J6 design was adapted to the Canadian ultralight rules as the

Norman Aviation J6 Karatoo The Norman Aviation J6 Karatoo is a Canadian advanced ultralight aircraft, that was designed by Jesse Anglin, and produced by Norman Aviation of Saint-Anselme, Quebec. The aircraft was supplied as a kit for Homebuilt aircraft, amateur constr ...

and, in 1990, as the Buzzman L'il Buzzard.

Operational history

In August 2012 there were 14 J6 Karatoos registered in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

with the

Federal Aviation Administration The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is a Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government agency within the United States Department of Transportation, U.S. Department of Transportation that regulates civil aviation in t ...

in the ''Experimental - Amateur Built'' and light-sport categories.

Variants

;J6A Karatoo :Initial model with a gross weight of , commonly powered by a

. The earliest versions had a solid

spruce A spruce is a tree of the genus ''Picea'' ( ), a genus of about 40 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal ecosystem, boreal (taiga) regions of the Northern hemisphere. ''Picea'' ...

main spar and later a spruce

I beam An I-beam is any of various structural members with an - (serif capital letter 'I') or H-shaped cross-section. Technical terms for similar items include H-beam, I-profile, universal column (UC), w-beam (for "wide flange"), universal beam (UB), ...

spar. ;J6B Australian Karatoo :Improved model developed by Anglin in conjunction with Max Peters. The J6B has a gross weight of , strengthened landing gear, optional flaps and initially used a

automotive conversion powerplant. ;J6C Australian Karatoo :Model with a gross weight of , a longer and wider fuselage, with a revised rear fuselage structure.

Specifications (Serenity J6B Australian Karatoo)

References

External links