Airdrome Morane Saulnier L

The Airdrome Morane Saulnier L is an American amateur-built aircraft, designed and produced by Airdrome Aeroplanes, of Holden, Missouri. The aircraft is supplied as a kit for amateur construction.

The aircraft is a 3/4 scale replica of the First World War French Morane-Saulnier L fighter, first flown by French aviator Roland Garros to shoot down an enemy aircraft with a forward-firing machine gun in March 1915. The replica is built from modern materials and powered by modern engines.

Design and development
The Airdrome Morane Saulnier L features a parasol wing monoplane layout, a single-seat open cockpit, fixed conventional landing gear and a single engine in tractor configuration.

The aircraft is made from bolted-together aluminum tubing, with its flying surfaces covered in doped aircraft fabric. The kit is made up of twelve sub-kits. The Airdrome Morane Saulnier L has a wingspan of 26 ft and a wing area of 120 sqft. It can be equipped with engines ranging from 35 to 52 hp. The standard engine used is the 35 hp Valley Engineering Big Twin four stroke engine. Building time from the factory-supplied kit is estimated at 300 hours by the manufacturer.

Operational history
Two examples had been completed by December 2011.