From 2024 (YouTube Edition): Innovative Pitch Control Eliminates Runway Accidents

Aero-News Network’s Rex Alexander spoke with Herbie Lewis of ELA Aviación, who discussed the features of their new gyroplane, the Eclipse 10 Revo. Eclipse 10 Revo is the only gyroplane in the world that is capable of doing a vertical takeoff or regular gyro takeoff. No one else has this technology right now. ELA has a patent pending for the tech, so no one else will have it for a long time.

The Eclipse 10 is powered by the Rotax 916, 160 hp engine. It also has a 4-blade constant speed propeller from Duc Propellers. Herbie said the constant speed prop makes a huge difference in the cruise speed which will be about 117-120 mph and probably makes it the fastest cruising gyro in the world as well.

The way it gets the jump takeoff is they’re using a system that changes the pitch of the rotor blades momentarily for takeoff. It has been done in the past but not with the 2-blade rotor system like they’re using here on these gyros.

When asked, Herbie said there is no horizontal movement necessary for the jump takeoff. You start out with the pitch of the prop and rotor blades zeroed out, then and you get really high on the throttle rpm and the rotor rpm so when you let go of the prerotator bun it puts pitch to both the prop and the rotor at the exact same time. So when you take off you don’t go straight up and come straight back down – as you lift up, the gyro accelerates forward so there’s no chance of coming straight back down to the ground.

This will have a big impact on the safety aspect of the gyro market because normally when you take off in a gyro you need 3-400 feet of runway, and 99% of gyro accidents occur on the runway on takeoff due to low rotor rpm. So if you get rid of having that low rotor rpm on takeoff and just do a vertical takeoff or very short field with a 2 or 3-foot roll, that’s the safest way to do it. But this system completely eliminates the accidents that happen on the ground due to low rotor rpm.

The cost for this model will be about $239,000 in the U.S. ELA has about 40 ordered and close to 10 delivered. This one is the first in the U.S., but in Europe, Costa Rica, and Columbia, there’ve been a few delivered and people are loving it so far.

Endurance is about 370 nm miles so you can actually get up and go somewhere with it.

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