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SkyCycle ultralight trike
UltralightNews.com
Coming in at #8 on our list of ultralight aircraft that give you the biggest bang for your buck is the Skycycle weight shift trike from
Fly Hard Trikes.
Mike Theeke (pronounced "Tiki") is one of the foremost trike pilots in the USA.
Mike has flown over 1,000 hours in hangliders and over 3,000 hours in Ultralight
Trikes.
Mike works with his wife Tina who is Vice President of the company and the
flight school co-ordinator.
To date Mike has piloted over 200 students through their solo check flights! His
passion for flying trikes is contagious!
Nestled just outside Chattanooga, Marion County Airport is the HQ for Fly Hard
Trikes, where Mike also produces the "Skycycle". This soaring trike makes flying
with the birds a reality!
The SkyCycle weight shift trike was designed to comply with the US FAR 103 Ultralight Vehicles rules, including the category's maximum empty weight of
254 lb (115 kg).
The aircraft has a standard empty weight of 205 lb (93 kg) in its "S" model. It features a cable-braced or optionally a strut-braced hang glider-style high-
wing, weight-shift controls, a single-seat open cockpit with a small cockpit fairing, tricycle landing gear and a single engine in pusher configuration.
The aircraft is made from bolted-together aluminum tubing, with its single surface wing covered in Dacron sailcloth. Its 32.9 ft (10.0 m) span wing uses
an "A" frame weight-shift control bar.
The powerplant is a twin cylinder, air-cooled, two-stroke, single-ignition 40 hp (30 kW) Rotax 447 engine or the twin-cylinder, in-line, two-stroke 32 hp
(24 kW) Kawasaki 340. With the Kawasaki 340 engine the aircraft has an empty weight of 205 lb (93 kg) and a gross weight of 400 lb (181 kg), giving a
useful load of 195 lb (88 kg). With full fuel of 5 U.S. gallons (19 L; 4.2 imp gal) the payload is 165 lb (75 kg).
A number of different wings can be fitted to the basic carriage, including the strut-braced
North Wing Maverick III and the Airborne Sting 175.
The SkyCycle has won a number of awards including, Sun 'n Fun Best Type Trike Ultralight, Sun
'n Fun Outstanding Weight Shift Ultralight, Sun 'n Fun Grand Champion and Best Commercial
Ultralight, Sun 'n Fun Best Type Trike Ultralight and Best Commercial Ultralight, Sun 'n Fun
Best Type Trike Ultralight and Sun 'n Fun Grand Champion
Fly Hard Trikes makes several models of the SkyCycle, including the Skycycle S which is
powered the 32 hp (24 kW) Kawasaki 340 twin cylinder two stroke engine, and is equipped
with a North Wing Maverick III strut-braced wing, cockpit fairing and has an empty weight of
205 lb (93 kg).
The SkyCycle Firefly is the Nanotrike version with the 24 hp (18 kW) Zenoah G25 engine, the
Airborne Sting 175 wing, instrument pod only in place of the cockpit fairing and an empty
weight of 110 lb (50 kg).
In 2014 an electric-powered version of the SkyCycle was completed and is flying.
SkyCycle weight shift trike - 12 Ultralight Aircraft that give the
biggest bang for the buck!
