Blackwing Sweden Blackwing

The Blackwing Sweden Blackwing is a Swedish ultralight and light-sport aircraft designed and produced by Blackwing Sweden of Lund, introduced at the AERO Friedrichshafen show in 2015. The aircraft is supplied as a kit for amateur construction or complete and ready-to-fly.

Design and development
The Blackwing is the result of a research project commenced in the 1990s, culminating in wind tunnel tests and a 350-hour prototype flight test program. It was designed to comply with the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale microlight rules with a version at a gross weight of 472.5 kg and US light-sport aircraft rules with a version with a gross weight of 600 kg.

The design features a cantilever low-wing, an enclosed cockpit with two-seats-in-side-by-side configuration under a bubble canopy, fixed or optionally retractable tricycle landing gear and a single engine in tractor configuration.

The aircraft is made from pre-preg carbon fibre built on a foam core. Its 8.4 m span wing has an area of 9.4 m2 and flaps. Standard engines available are the 100 hp Rotax 912ULS and 912iS, although engines up to 150 hp can be installed.

The cabin width for all models is 121 cm.

As of January 2017, the design does not appear on the Federal Aviation Administration's list of approved special light-sport aircraft.

Operational history
Reviewer Marino Boric described the design in a 2015 review as "a sleek speedster".

Variants

 * Blackwing 600 RG
 * Model with 472.5 kg gross weight for the European microlight category, retractable landing gear and a cruise speed of 278 km/h.


 * Blackwing 600 FG
 * Model with 472.5 kg gross weight for the European microlight category, fixed landing gear and a cruise speed of 252 km/h.


 * Blackwing Edge
 * Kit-built aerobatic model with 600 kg gross weight for the LSA category, retractable landing gear and a maximum level TAS of 376 km/h.


 * Blackwing 635 RG
 * Model with 600 kg gross weight for the LSA category, retractable landing gear and a maximum level TAS of 370 km/h.