Kitfox

[Taildragger55]

Been attracted to a Kitfox I saw recently, but I hear they can be a bit twitchy in flight.
Would they be appropriate for a low time taildragger pilot?

[ToryBoy]

The Kitfox is an easy taildragger to fly (if perhaps not one of the nicest).

Due to its relatively low weight the inertia on landing is less and this therefore reduces the risk of the "arse" end wanting to overtake the nose end on landing. Therefore, your groundloop risks are reduced here compared to something with a narrow track and long fuse such as the Luscombe etc.

Comfort in flight is average to poor especially on a gusty or very hot day and progress is notably slow with a stiff headwind.

I personally think they are fantastic machines and don't deserve the turned up nose that so many people give them. If you are looking for honest farm strip flying then the Kitfox is near the top of the list.

Picture the scene.............warm summers evening, doors off, flying alone, open airspace, open country (with a gridlocked motorway winding through it). Heaven...

[Taildragger55]

MMMMMM.

Tempting, indeed.
I shall continue to ponder. Thanks for the comment.

[Genghis the Engineer]

They did develop an early bad reputation in the UK, which was probably undeserved. One of the first readily available kitplanes, a lot of people were getting straight out of standard club trainers and into Kitfoxes - and unsurprisingly bending them.

Francis Donaldson (PFA's Chief Engineer) advises anybody buying a Kitfox to first of all to get some training on a Thruster TST (the original 3-axis microlight trainer, and a taildragger), and that seems to work in preventing anybody hitting problems. There is also the PFA's coaching scheme to give you a type conversion - I think that if you avail yourself of either or both of those options, it should present you with a pleasant and cheap little flying machine that shouldn't frighten you at-all.

G

[Sir George Cayley]

The most noticeable thing I found when flying an early one was the effect of the full span ailerons.

At low speed they felt less than effective especially if partial droop was selected. In the criuse at about 75 - 80 Kts there was considerable adverse yaw too.

If one looks at another aircraft that may have unfairly attracted crticism (the Europa) they are both aircraft with handling characterics on takeoff and landing very different to the average club trainer.

The PFA and Europa Kits did a lot to coach inexperienced pilots and the accident rate fell.

Design mods to the later Kitfox marks have improved the breed and I believe that a pilot with aptitude and the correct introduction would find it an enjoyble a/c.

I would be wary of an early Mk1 or 2 though unless the wing has been upgraded.

Sir George Cayley

[Taildragger55]

I was wondering about the point of the full span ailerons.
Are the wing mods a big deal?
At my age partial droop is far too familiar:rolleyes:

[Kingy]

Ok hands up! I managed to break one the other week...!

The combination of an under reading ASI, pesky cross wind and bumpy field, not to mention my sloppy flying technique was too much for the poor corroded tailspring to take... It promply snapped - leaving me very red faced and the new owner (who is a family member) very degected...!

My logbooks simply states 'first flight Kitfox - broke it'

Seriously now, they are quite short coupled and do tend to bounce like crazy if you get it wrong. I discovered that the tail spring has been modifyed twice and now is of a longer, solid Alu bar which makes the ground angle less steep and being firmer, does not bounce like the old leaf spring variety - might be something worth checking out if you are looking at one to buy.

All in all, I quite like them. If it wasn't for the strimmer engine fitted to most of them I'd be tempted to buy one myself...!

Kingy

[bingoboy]

Is there a reason why they all seem to have those enormous bouncy tyres ??

Do they need them to supplement the undercarriage bungy cord or could you fit more normal size tyres which would in itself lower the ground angle ??

[Arclite01]

See the PFA Mag for a much improved Kitfox with a radial engine - not a rotax geared chainsaw job...........

It really looks a great piece of kit - I wouldn't mind a trip in it I tell you........

[cubflyer]

Yes, there is a great write-up on Les James's Rotec radial powered Kitfox in the latest PFA Mag. Ive seen it flying too, seems to perform well and sounds great!
The article mentions poor handling with the ailerons fully drooped and that its better to not use any flap at all- just sideslip.
I havent flown a Kitfox but here lots of advice that because of the low inertial, they are a bit of a handful in gusty crosswinds. But I guess if you respect the crosswind limitations, then maybe ok.
I did fly a couple of Avids which are very similar. I found the clipped wing version much nicer to fly, than the long wing version. The long wing version was I believe very similar wing to the early kitfoxes.
A friend of mine had a Kitfox for quite a few years and flew it all over the place and had a great time with it (sold it when his RV-6 was finished) There is another guy in Scotland with one who flies all over the place and has lots of trouble free hours, except his landing at the beginning of the PFA rally last year- but it was flying again not too long after I think