The APEV Pouchelec () is a French amateur-built

electric aircraft An electric aircraft is an aircraft powered by electricity. Electric aircraft are seen as a way to reduce the environmental effects of aviation, providing zero emissions and quieter flights. Electricity may be supplied by a variety of methods, ...

, that was designed by Daniel Dalby and produced by

APEV APEV (''Association pour la Promotion des Echelles Volantes'', English: ''Association for the Promotion of Flying Ladders'') is a French aircraft manufacturer, founded by Daniel Dalby in 1997 and based in Peynier. The organization specialize ...

of Peynier. When it was available the aircraft was supplied as plans or as a kit for amateur construction.Bayerl, Robby; Martin Berkemeier; et al: ''World Directory of Leisure Aviation 2011-12'', page 93. WDLA UK, Lancaster UK, 2011. ISSN 1368-485XTacke, Willi; Marino Boric; et al: ''World Directory of Light Aviation 2015-16'', page 97. Flying Pages Europe SARL, 2015.

Design and development

The Pouchelec is a development of the

APEV Pouchel Light The APEV Pouchel Light () is a French amateur-built aircraft, designed by Daniel Dalby and produced by APEV of Peynier. The aircraft is supplied as plans or as a kit for amateur construction.Bayerl, Robby; Martin Berkemeier; et al: ''World D ...

, adapted for electric power, including revised

landing gear Landing gear is the undercarriage of an aircraft or spacecraft that is used for taxiing, takeoff or landing. For aircraft, it is generally needed for all three of these. It was also formerly called ''alighting gear'' by some manufacturers, s ...

and longer span wings with greater surface area. The original Pouchel was constructed using three commercially available

aluminium Aluminium (or aluminum in North American English) is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol Al and atomic number 13. It has a density lower than that of other common metals, about one-third that of steel. Aluminium has ...

ladders, hence APEV is the Association pour la Promotion des Echelles Volantes, or in English, Association for the Promotion of Flying Ladders. Later models were forced to move to rectangular aluminium tubing when the ladder manufacturer grew concerned about liability. The Pouchel series are all derivatives of the classic 1930s

Henri Mignet Henri Mignet (19 October 1893 – 31 August 1965) was a French radio engineer who became well known as an aircraft designer and builder.Ellis & Jones (1990)Plane and Pilot: ''1978 Aircraft Directory'', page 142. Werner & Werner Corp, Santa Mon ...

-designed

Mignet Pou-du-Ciel The Flying Flea () is a large family of light homebuilt aircraft first flown in 1933. The odd name comes from the French nickname for the Ford Model T automobile: ''Pou de la Route'', or "Louse of the Road", because Henry Ford's economy car ...

(Flying Flea). The Pouchelec features a cantilever rear wing with 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 ...

parasol An umbrella or parasol is a folding canopy (building), canopy supported by wooden or metal ribs that is mounted on a wooden, metal, or plastic pole. It is usually designed to protect a person against rain. The term ''umbrella'' is traditionall ...

front wing, a single-seat open cockpit without a windshield, 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 is made from bolted-together

tubing, with its flying surfaces covered in

Dacron Polyethylene terephthalate (or poly(ethylene terephthalate), PET, PETE, or the obsolete PETP or PET-P), is the most common thermoplastic polymer resin of the polyester family and is used in fibres for clothing, containers for liquids and foods ...

sailcloth. Its span front wing and span rear have a combined area of and both employ NACA 23112

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 ...

s. The engine supplied is a AGNI 119R electric motor powered by a Kokam

Lithium-ion polymer battery A lithium polymer battery, or more correctly, lithium-ion polymer battery (abbreviated as LiPo, LIP, Li-poly, lithium-poly, and others), is a rechargeable battery derived from lithium-ion and lithium-metal battery technology. The primary differe ...

pack, which gives a 30-minute flight endurance. As of late 2017 it was no longer listed as available as plans or a kit.

Operational history

Bayerl et al. describe the aircraft in flight as "wonderfully quiet".

Specifications (Pouchelec)

References

External links

Official website

Video of early test flights
{{APEV aircraft Homebuilt aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft Electric aircraft Pouchelec Tandem-wing aircraft