Micro Aviation B22 Bantam

The Micro Aviation B22 Bantam is a New Zealand ultralight aircraft, designed and produced by Micro Aviation NZ of Hamilton, New Zealand and later of Mandeville, New Zealand. The aircraft is supplied as a complete ready-to-fly-aircraft.

Design and development
The aircraft complies with the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale microlight rules as well as the United Kingdom BCAR Section "S" regulations. It features a strut-braced high-wing, a two-seats-in-side-by-side configuration enclosed cockpit, fixed tricycle landing gear and a single engine in tractor configuration.

The aircraft is made from bolted-together aluminum tubing, with its flying surfaces covered in Dacron sailcloth. Its 9.03 m span wing has an area of 15.1 m2 and is supported by V-struts and jury struts. The engine is mounted above the cockpit on the forward end of the main keel tube. Standard engines available are the 64 hp Rotax 582 two-stroke and the 85 hp Jabiru 2200 four-stroke powerplant.

Operational history
Two Bantams are in use by park rangers in Kruger National Park in South Africa. Total production has exceeded 300 aircraft.

The World Directory of Leisure Aviation reviewed the Bantam and described it as "a simple practical aircraft characterized by its agility, vice-free handling and ease of maintenance."

Variants

 * B22J
 * Higher powered version


 * B22S
 * Standard model