The Watson WG-1 Windwagon is a single-seat recreational ultralight designed in the United States in 1976 and marketed for homebuilding. Designer Gary Watson originally sold kits as well as plans, but later sold only plans.

Design and development

The Windwagon is a low-wing cantilever monoplane of conventional design with fixed, tricycle undercarriage, and a single-seat open cockpit.Markowski 1984, p.261 Construction is of pop-riveted metal throughout. The outer wing panels are removable to facilitate hangering and trailering.Dwiggins 1980, p.102 Power is supplied by an air-cooled, tractor-mounted piston engine driving a propeller. The engine selected by Watson was an automotive Volkwagen air-cooled engine sawn in half across its crankcase to turn the flat-four engine into a flat-two (a modification called a "

half VW The Volkswagen air-cooled engine is an Air-cooled engine, air-cooled, gasoline-fuelled, boxer engine with four horizontally opposed cast-iron cylinder (engine), cylinders, cast aluminum alloy cylinder heads and pistons, magnesium-alloy crankca ...

"). Plans for the Windwagon included instructions for modifying a Volkswagen engine this way. By 1987, Watson had sold over 1,025 sets of plans, and over 500 Windwagons had been built around the world. The

Hummel Bird The Hummel Bird is an experimental/amateur built aircraft designed by Morry Hummel and produced by Hummel Aviation of Byran, Ohio, United States. It is a single-seat, single-engine, all-metal airplane typically powered by a 1/2 VW engine in the ...

is a development of this design.

Specifications (as designed)

References

* * * {{cite book , title=Jane's All the World's Aircraft 1987-88 , editor1-last=Taylor , editor1-first=John W.R. , year=1987 , publisher=Jane's Information Group , location=London 1970s United States sport aircraft Ultralight aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft Low-wing aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1977 Single-engined piston aircraft Aircraft manufactured in the United States