Aircraft Is An All Wood Design With Composite Cowl And Bubble Canopy

Its been a long time since we had a chance to fly any of the aircraft that originally sprang forth from the mind of our old friend Mike Fisher... and so we were pleased to note that the company is still alive and well -- and apparently in good hands.

The Fisher breed were mostly all wood, inexpensive to buy and easy to build, with over a dozen designs still being offered by the company, currently based in Canada, under the direction of Dave Hertner... who seems wholly invested in making sure that FFP remains a force to be reckoned with. 

The reason I reached out was due to our starting research on the Third Edition of the Sport Plane Resource Guide and some info that had been passed to me about their next new design... which is a departure from what they have done in the past... as its a small low-wing speedster, still mostly wood, but with the option of fixed or retract gear.

Aimed at a different segment of the market, this aircraft is an all wood design with composite cowl and bubble canopy. It seats 2 in tandem and has retractable tricycle landing gear!

FFP will be offering this aircraft as a full kit with all of the metal and hardware components already prefabricated and ready for assembly. They will also be providing all of the premium wood and plywood materials in the kit as well as adhesives.

The fuselage design is very much in line with their other larger planes and except for the control surfaces is fully sheeted with aircraft grade plywood. The aircraft was designed in Europe and will be made available with plans that show both imperial and metric measurements.

Based on what we've seen so far, we agree that the bird looks somewhat like a small Tucano. Using classic wooden construction, the Fisher Aria is entirely boxed in Finnish Birch Plywood except for the control surfaces (rudder, flaps and ailerons).

This aircraft was designed to comply with the design rules of the aeronautical standard FAR 23 / Part 2 / Appendix A. The prototype was subjected to static tests on the ground which made it possible to prove the conformity of the design limits and load factors for this category.

The aircraft is meant to be powered by either a Rotax 912 or a new electric powerplant system under development. Max Cruise Speed (75% pwr) is 186.4 mph. Climbing nearly 1000 fpm, the Aria has an 800 sm range and can land in under 500 feet. We'll keep you apprised...

FMI: https://fisherflying.com/