The Great Lakes Sport Trainer is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

biplane A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two main wings stacked one above the other. The first powered, controlled aeroplane to fly, the Wright Flyer, used a biplane wing arrangement, as did many aircraft in the early years of aviation. While ...

trainer and aerobatic aircraft. It was originally produced in large numbers before the company building it went

bankrupt Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the de ...

in the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

in 1933. Owing to its continuing popularity, however, it was eventually placed back into production in the 1970s and again in 2011 by WACO Classic Aircraft.

Development and design

The Great Lakes Aircraft Corporation of

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–United States border, Canada–U.S. maritime border ...

, produced a design for a small two-seat sports/trainer in early 1929, with the first prototype flying in March 1929. The resulting aircraft, designated 2-T-1, was a single bay

of mixed, fabric-covered construction and with a tailskid undercarriage. Power was by a single Cirrus III inline engine (as the

Detroit Aircraft Corporation The Detroit Aircraft Corporation was incorporated in Detroit, Michigan on July 10, 1922, as the Aircraft Development Corporation. The name was changed in 1929. The Detroit corporation owned the entire capital stock of the Ryan Aircraft Corp., Air ...

, the holding company for Great Lakes, also held the American rights to the Cirrus, so all Sports Trainers were originally sold with Cirrus engines). History of the Great Lakes Sport Trainer
Retrieved 2 April 2008. Initial testing showed that the aircraft was tail heavy, so after the first four aircraft were built, the upper wing was swept back.

Operational history

The aircraft proved very successful, with 262 built before construction ended as a result of the closure of Great Lakes due to the

. It was highly maneuverable even on the relatively modest power of a Cirrus engine. A 1929 Great Lakes Model 2T1a held for many years the world record for consecutive outside loops, a total of 131, set by Jim Moss flying the Hunt Special which by the early 1930s had been highly modified and re-powered with a Warner Scarab 165 7 cylinder radial engine.Davisson, Budd
"The Great, Great Lakes"
Air Progress, July 1975 The Great Lakes continued to be popular well after production ended, and many aircraft adopted more powerful engines, particularly the

Jacobs Jacobs may refer to: Businesses and organisations *Jacob's, a brand name for several lines of biscuits and crackers in Ireland and the UK * Jacobs (coffee), a German brand of coffee * Jacobs Solutions, an American international technical professi ...

radial engine The radial engine is a reciprocating engine, reciprocating type internal combustion engine, internal combustion engine configuration in which the cylinder (engine), cylinders "radiate" outward from a central crankcase like the spokes of a wheel. ...

s. Eventually, in the 1960s, the rights for the Sport Trainer were acquired by Harvey Swack, who offered plans of the aircraft for sale to homebuilders. In 1972, Swack sold the rights on to Doug Champlin, who set up a reconstituted Great Lakes Aircraft Company to produce a revised version meeting the current airworthiness requirements, powered by modern Lycoming engines and revised materials of construction (including the use of

Douglas fir The Douglas fir (''Pseudotsuga menziesii'') is an evergreen conifer species in the pine family, Pinaceae. It is the tallest tree in the Pinaceae family. It is native to western North America and is also known as Douglas-fir, Douglas spruce, Or ...

instead of

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'' ...

). The first of the new production aircraft, the Model 2T-1A-1, powered by a engine was certified in May 1973, with production starting in October that year. A more powerful version, the 2T-1A-2 followed in July 1974. In 1978, production was divided between Wichita, Kansas, and Enid, Oklahoma, with the intent on relocation to Florida, but production by Great Lakes Aircraft at Wichita and Enid ended that year, with 137 built. Rights to the Sport Trainer continued to switch hands, resulting in production moving several times. In 1979, rights were acquired by Dean Franklin, who moved production to

Eastman, Georgia Eastman is a city in Dodge County, Georgia, United States. The population was 5,658 at the 2020 census, up from 4,962 at the 2010 census. The city was named after William Pitt Eastman, a native of Massachusetts who purchased a large tract of l ...

. Production restarted at Eastman in 1980, but ended in 1982. In 1984 the company was brought out by John LaBelle, and moved to

Claremont, New Hampshire Claremont is the only city in Sullivan County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 12,949 at the 2020 census. Claremont is a core city of the Lebanon–Claremont micropolitan area, a bi-state, four-county region in the upper Connec ...

, with production restarting that year, but production ended again in 1985. In January 2011, WACO Classic Aircraft announced that it will put the Great Lakes Model 2T-1A-1/2 model biplane back into production. The aircraft had not been available since 1980. The aircraft will incorporate several changes including metal wing spars. It will be offered in two models, a touring model, with a Lycoming IO-360-B1F6 engine and a higher-performance sport model, with a Lycoming AEIO-360-B1G6 engine. Work on the new production model was completed in June 2013 and the base price announced as

US$ The United States dollar (Currency symbol, symbol: Dollar sign, $; ISO 4217, currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and International use of the U.S. dollar, several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introdu ...

245,000. Waco had built 220 Sport Trainers by 2022.

Variants

;Model 2T-1 :Original production. 85 hp (63 kW) American Cirrus III engine. Small tail. Approximately 40 built. ;Model 2T-1A :Revised version with enlarged tail surfaces and 90 hp (67 kW) American Cirrus Ace engine. About 200 built. ;Model 2T-1A-1 :New production (1973 on) version. Powered by 140 hp (104 kW)

Lycoming O-320 The Lycoming O-320 is a large family of naturally aspirated, air-cooled, flat four engine, horizontally-opposed four-cylinder, direct-drive engines produced by Lycoming Engines. Introduced in 1953, it is commonly used on light aircraft such a ...

engine. ;Model 2T-1A-2 :More powerful version - powered by 180 hp (134 kW)

Lycoming IO-360 The Lycoming O-360 is a family of four-cylinder, direct-drive, horizontally opposed, air-cooled, piston aircraft engines. Engines in the O-360 series produce between , with the basic O-360 producing . The engine family has been installed in ...

engine. ;Model 2T-1A-E :Homebuilt Experimental Plans-built ;Model 2T-1E :95 hp (71 kW) American Cirrus Ensign engine. About twelve built. ;X :A 2T-1E used for aero-engine testing. ;Model 2T-1MS :

Menasco Pirate The Menasco Pirate series are four-cylinder, air-cooled, in-line, inverted aero-engines, built by the Menasco Motors Company of Burbank, California, for use in light general and sport aircraft during the 1930s and 1940s. The Menasco engines c ...

powered two-seat version, one example (registration of ''NC 304Y'') airworthy at

Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome The Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome is a living museum in Red Hook, New York, Red Hook, New York, adjacent to the town of Rhinebeck (town), New York, Rhinebeck. Founded in 1958, it owns many examples of airworthy aircraft from the Aviation in the pioneer ...

is fitted with Goodyear "airwheel" low-pressure main gear tires, and was a favorite aircraft of Cole Palen, the museum's founder. ;Model 2T-1R :Homebuilt variant with a Ranger 6-440-5. ;Model 2T-2 Speedster :Racing version of 2T-1-A. Powered by Cirrus Hi-Drive and straight top wing. Later rebuilt as Model 2T-1E.Great Lakes
''Aerofiles.'' Retrieved 29 March 2008 BabyGreatLakes-2T-1A-2

;WACO Classic 2T-1A-1/2 :New production model starting in 2011. There will be two models, a touring model, with a

Lycoming IO-360-B1G6 The Lycoming O-360 is a family of four-cylinder, direct-drive, horizontally opposed, air-cooled, piston aircraft engines. Engines in the O-360 series produce between , with the basic O-360 producing . The engine family has been installed in ...

engine and a higher-performance sport model, with a Lycoming AEIO-360-B1G6 engine

Specifications (Model 2T-1A-2)

References

Notes

Bibliography

* * * * * *

External links

* * (Type Certificate) {{Authority control 1920s United States civil trainer aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft Sport Trainer Aerobatic aircraft Biplanes Aircraft first flown in 1929 Aircraft with fixed conventional landing gear 2T-1A Single-engined piston aircraft