The Miller Tern is an American single-seat,

high wing A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft A fixed-wing aircraft is a heavier-than-air aircraft, such as an airplane, which is capable of flight using aerodynamic lift. Fixed-wing aircraft are distinct from rotary-wing aircraft (in which a r ...

glider that was designed by William Terrance Miller and offered as plans for amateur construction.Said, Bob: ''1983 Sailplane Directory,

Soaring Magazine ''SOARING'' is a magazine published monthly as a membership benefit of the Soaring Society of America. It was first published in 1937. The headquarters is in Hobbs, New Mexico. The magazine's article topics include safety issues and accounts of i ...

'', page 15. Soaring Society of America, November 1983. USPS 499-920

Design and development

Named for the

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class (biology), class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the Oviparity, laying of Eggshell, hard-shelled eggs, a high Metabolism, metabolic rate, a fou ...

, the Tern was the product of Miller's desire to design a sailplane specifically for homebuilding, providing ease of construction and good performance for its day. The first Tern was completed in 1965 and at least 36 more were completed in the US,

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

and other countries. Plans are no longer available. The Tern is constructed from a combination of wood and

fiberglass Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English) is a common type of fibre-reinforced plastic, fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened i ...

. It has a fixed monowheel landing gear,

dive brake Dive brakes or dive flaps are deployed to slow down an aircraft when in a dive. They often consist of a metal flap that is lowered against the air flow, thus creating drag and reducing dive speed.Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Terms, ...

s and an optional tail-mounted

drag chute A drogue parachute, also called drag chute, is a parachute designed for deployment from a rapidly moving object. It can be used for various purposes, such as to decrease speed, to provide control and stability, as a pilot parachute to deploy ...

. The cantilever wing uses a Wortmann 61 series

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 ...

. The basic Tern has a wingspan that gives a

glide ratio In aerodynamics, the lift-to-drag ratio (or L/D ratio) is the lift generated by an aerodynamic body such as an aerofoil or aircraft, divided by the aerodynamic drag caused by moving through air. It describes the aerodynamic efficiency under give ...

of 34:1 at , while the longer span Tern II, with its wingspan, has a glide ratio several points higher.

Operational history

In March 2011 there were 14 Terns on 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 ...

register, including 4 Tern IIs and one Tern 17M. All Terns are registered in the US as ''Experimental - Amateur-built'' In March 2011 there were two Terns registered with

Transport Canada Transport Canada () is the Ministry (government department), department within the Government of Canada responsible for developing regulations, Policy, policies and Public services, services of road, rail, marine and air Transport in Canada, tra ...

, both amateur-builts.

Variants

;Tern :Initial version with a wingspan and a glide ratio of 34:1 at ;Tern II :Improved version with a wingspan, retractable landing gear, trailing edge airbrakes, and a reported 40:1 glide ratio. Gross weight of 852 lbs. Modifications designed and built by John and William Ree, who also collaborated with Miller on the Cherokee RM. First flown in 1968. Destroyed in unrecoverable spin in 1970. ;Tern 17M :Version with a wingspan, one built

Aircraft on display

National Soaring Museum The National Soaring Museum (NSM) is an aviation museum whose stated aim is to preserve the history of motorless flight. It is located in Big Flats Town, New York, on top of Harris Hill near Elmira. The NSM is the Soaring Society of America's ...

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Specifications (Tern)

References

{{reflist

External links

Photo of a Tern
1960s United States sailplanes Aircraft first flown in 1965