Europa - Any advice?

[Flying_Anorak]

As it says really, any advice?

[Rod1]

There are many types of Europa;

Classic Mono
Classic tri
XS Mono
XS tri
Glider wings, high top etc.

Engines are 80hp to 115hp Rotax or Jab 6Cyl

Some of the above are good, some very poor.

Rod1

[Fitter2]

If you want to buy a flying example, take a really good LAA inspector to do a survey.

If you are 6 ft tall or over, there is little headroom, the current 'hi-top' build are a lot more friendly to tall pilots.

Basically, a very nice aeroplane, with 'tailwheel' care needed when landing the mono version.

Talk to the Europa Club - they are a good bunch.

[ivorPhillips]

Are you talking about building or flying?

If building check out the Europa matronic site or Europaaircraft.org for the build

Manuals,



I fly a Tri gear XS that took seven years to complete, andhas been the most fun to fly

With 470 hours and counting,



It’s a very capable aircraft with a good cruise and lowstalling speed with decent

Range carrying two with luggage,





Ivor

[Pace]

Ivor

You could be dead in seven years or loose a medical in that length of time, get divorced or experience a large life change.
I always admire you builders for your staying power and patience! I would want to be flying it tomorrow not in seven years
I presume you must get as much pleasure in building as in flying to commit so much of your time and energy to such a project?
I had a friend who built an RV6A from plans not a kit and that took him five solid years of literally living in the garage and a very understanding partner.

Pace

[Flying_Anorak]

Thanks all for the advice thus far.

I'm thinking in terms of buying as alas I dont have the time, space or skills to build my own. Basically I'm a reasonably experienced glider pilot (<900hrs) who has recently got himself an NPPL SSEA which due to cost, availability and the general pre-planning needed to book a week plus ahead, I'm not really getting any use of or building my hours.

I have a friend in the same position and it seems that the Europa may fit the biill for us, just wondered if there are any gotchas we need to be aware of. Neither of us are tall but we are amply proportioned (circa 95Kg ea) and therefore can it still take us plus a usable fuel load etc?

Other alternatives are the traditional 'spam cans' (see previous post) but the running costs on all of these (including the good old Robin) seem akin to current hire rates!

Cheers,

FN

[gasax]

They vary a lot!

You already have an understanding of the payload issue - as with most homebuilts this can be very variable, generally the older models have less payload but individual variations are more significant.

I know two Europa owners who love the aircraft - but both have fitted trike undercarriages. If you have been flying spamcans then the monwheel will be a challenge.

You'll need to fly several to get a feel for the variations - and what you are prepared to live with - the difference between an early 80hp with fixed pitch (now a real rarity for obvious reasons) and a 914 with in flight adjustable is like night and day.

I feel there is a lot more variation in Europas than for instance Jodels....

[BackPacker]

Other alternatives are the traditional 'spam cans' (see previous post) but the running costs on all of these (including the good old Robin) seem akin to current hire rates!

Your choice should not be limited to a Europa on one hand, and a spamcan (I feel offended for you putting the Robin in that category, but ok) on the other hand.

In the last five years or so, a whole generation of MLAs/VLAs have hit the market. Most are two-seaters, a fair amount are composite, and most are powered by the Rotax 912ULS or 912S (or even the 912iS already - the fuel injected 912S variant which holds a lot of promise.)

I'm sure the collective wisdom of this forum can come up with the names of at least 20 of these aircraft. At the moment only the Aquila comes to my mind (but I bet a few more will hit me once I hit the "submit" button.) Anyway, browse your favorite GA magazine and you'll probably end up with 10 names already. It's becoming a very crowded market.

So if your ideal aircraft looks like a modern two-seater with about 100 HP up front, there is a lot more out there than just the Europa. Both in composite and metal, with a Rotax, Jabiru or Lycosaurus, with various undercarriage types (nosewheel, conventional tailwheel or monowheel), high wing or low wing, with a CofA or PTF, home or factory built, avgas or mogas. Your choice.

(Sorry for not making the decision any easier...)

Edited: Just look at the Applications tab in the Wikipedia entry:

Rotax 912 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[monacam44]

Tailwheel

I've seen a couple of 'proper' tail wheel examples around which are very pretty indeed.

[Rod1]

If you are a glider pilot are you considering the glider wings? I think the approval is nearly done. With the weight issue I would discount the classic and only look at 100hp or 115hp Rotax XS aircraft.

Rod1

[Pace]

I do not have the knowledge of some of the posters in this thread as to the benefits of one VLA or another.
I have flown the RV6A mentioned above and loved it! An aircraft you thought through turns rather than making a definite input, Light yet so precise and quick too!
A real little personal fighter
Never been in a Europa but like the looks of the Tricycle variety rather than the mono wheel variant.

Pace

[BEagle]

A Europa owner once said to me "Don't whatever you do ever fly a Europa!".

When I asked him why not, he continued: "Because you'll immediately want to sell your soul to buy one of your own!"

Personally, I think that the monowheel version looks much nicer than any other version. But I understand that take-off and landing need quite some care.....

[rans6andrew]

I have never flown in a Europa but I know a man who has built TWO of them and still has the second one. Both are the tricycle undercarriage version. He has been all over in it/them from Tenerife to the Scottish islands. Mostly he flies solo and usually takes a folding bike along.

If you have specific questions I can forward them or ask if he is OK with you contacting him direct.

Rans6....

[ivorPhillips]

I still managed a great deal of flying when I was buildingincluding the Europa club Trip to the canaries,



Some builder’s have taken as little as two years to complete,and some are still building after 10 years, It’s up to the individual to decidehow much spare time he can spare



But their an oldsaying of The most expensive part of building an aircraft is the divorce,



So I made sure that myfamily had as much of my time as needed to keep the peace,

And now they reap the benefit like taking the missus to thesouth of France this weekend and flying to Scotland to visit my grand son acouple of weeks ago,



I personally prefer flying to building but its all doable ifyou are determined and stick at it, with the result of a machine that is exactlywhat you want,



Ivor

[x933]

Just bought a share in one (coming into it as a gliderpilot with PPL time, bit of tailwheel time thrown in for good measure). It's a lovely aeroplane, nicely balanced and a good performer. I can fly ours with someone my size (105kg), 50kgs of fuel (enough for about 3hrs plus small reserve), which makes it a fairly capable tourer. Ours burns 15l per hour of mogas, which gives me better economy than driving. I'm 6ft and don't find it fantastically comfortable - neither the seat nor pedals are adjustable so you'll either fit or you won't.

Happy to take you for a flight in ours to see, or there's one for sale at Bicester at the minute (GVKIT).