The Little Engine That Can … and Does

Rotax is an engine marque known to and beloved of every enthusiast of motorized—particularly very fast, very powerful, very X-Games/Mountain Dew-type—contraptions.

The company’s two and four-stroke engines power machines as dynamic and diverse as Ski-Doo and Lynx snowmobiles, Sea-Doo personal watercraft, Can-Am on-and-off-road vehicles, as well as racing karts, and a great many recreational aircraft. Savvy gearheads know but don’t make overly-public the startling fact that renowned high-performance motorcycle OEMs Aprilia, BMW, Buell, and KTM use Rotax or Rotax-branded engines in a number of their factory machines.

Founded in Dresden, Germany in 1920 as ROTAX-WERK AG, the company is now owned by Canadian aviation and recreational-craft powerhouse Bombardier. Dresden’s obliteration by Allied bombers sped Rotax toward its current Headquartered in the north-central-Austrian city of Gunskirchen, where a goodly number of the company’s more than 1,700 employees dream-up the hard-working engines that keep the world’s hard-playing addicts of adrenaline chasing redlines.

In August 2022, Rotax was pleased to welcome over one-hundred guests to its fly-in at the Aerodrome Wels in the central-Austrian city of Wels. Attendees braved heavy-weather to avail themselves of the latest products, technologies, and swag presented by joint event hosts Rotax, Aeroshell, Bose, and Rogers Data.

The intrepid souls who braved mountain, rain, and cloud took in presentations by engineers and specialists who expounded upon the wonders and glories of Rotax’s aircraft engines, to include the forward-thinking fuel-injection technology of the company’s 912 iS and 915 iS power-plants.

In addition to displays featuring Rogers Data aeronautical chart resources, Bose headsets, and Aeroshell lubricants and propellants, fly-in guests enjoyed flight simulators, special catering from Rotax’s food truck, and the kinship of their fellow aviators.

Across the wide world, more than 190,000 Rotax engines power all manner of light-sport and ultralight aircraft. The company’s global network of 16 authorized distributors and more than 220 points of sales and service support 270 OEMs producing north of 400 Rotax-powered models. All told, eighty-percent of light-sport and ultralight aircraft manufacturers contract with Rotax.

FMI: www.rotax.com