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RotorSport-UK
NEWS 26th February 2008 Gyrofest - Stoke Airfield - 24th to 26th May 2008 MT-03 owner Kai Maurer is organising a Gyro fly-in at Stoke airfield 24th to 26th May, including a fly-out to Abbeville in France. More details here.
22nd February 2008
We've
rather had our heads down so far this year, learning how to cope with
increasing production to 4 MT's per month, a CAA annual business
audit, exchange rate challenges, and more orders than we ever
anticipated. We now
have 43 aircraft either on order or supplied, which means the
next available gyro is in June. We have four here now, which, subject
to CAA audit, will start flying from our nest on Friday morning.
Timing is important, as the next four arrive on the 3rd March!
More output
means more people, so Jan has joined us in the office . She will be our
paperwork and administration focus, including managing service response.
Her background, as a glider pilot, means she can converse in pilot
language, and I believe she will be an important asset to the team.
With regard
to events, we expect to be at the Popham show on the 3rd May with our
own stall. As more and more of you are taking up instructing, and this
is the first significant fly in event of the season, I am hoping to see
as many of you as possible there - if nothing else, it'll show the
microlighters that gyros are out in force now! 20 plus MT's
there would make quite a picture...
We also
have a date for our now annual Fly-in - the 30/31st of August, at the
Long Mynd. Details will follow, so book it in your diary!
Don't also
forget Kai's planned fly in, early in May down in the far South East.
Finally,
the British Rotorcraft Association has it's annual AGM on 22nd March in
Leicester. All of you should be members, as On Risk offer a reduced
premium to BRA members.
This
association was formed to represent gyroplane owner operators and
gyroplane enthusiasts many years ago, and of late has built a good
reputation with the relevant authorities. The outgoing committee needs
new blood - roles such as Chairman, engineering officer etc. I was
Chairman for the last 3 years, but just don't have time to do it
justice, so if anyone feels they want to help drive gyroplanes forward
in the UK, come along and join in!
Best
regards, and enjoy the new flying season (if you ever stopped from
2007),
Gerry
19th October 2007 Latest news from RotorSport UK Ltd, UK and Irish home of the MT-03 Gyroplane! It’s been a while since we last issued a newsletter, which reflects on the busy business that gyroplanes have become. We are very pleased to be shipping out serial numbers 20 and 21 this month, and have a full order book to beyond Christmas. Our pilot owners seem to love the MT, and the list of orders grows almost daily.
Gyroplanes, of course, are flying all year round. Even when it gets cold outside, the built in heated clothing points help us keep warm! So we thought last weekend to have a ‘continued flying season’, rather than an ‘end of flying season’ fly-in at the Midland Gliding Club. This wonderful facility at 1,400ft on top of the Long Mynd hills in Shropshire is not only within a short walk from our workshops, but also boasts a super canteen, bar and basic stopover beds. Six of our UK fleet flew in, from as far away as Lydd and Northern Ireland, to start what we hope will be a well attended annual or even bi annual event. We were able to enjoy a short film of the four MT-03 gyros that flew to the corners of Australia earlier this year, and the excellent and appreciated hospitality of the Midland Gliding Club. We even made it to the gliding club home page at http://www.longmynd.com/ VAT. No one loves this (except HMRC), and we have been very successful, with HMRC approval, in selling gyros to UK customers via Denmark. This 0% vat route though is under threat. The Danish government is being forced to consider putting vat on gyroplanes (and all other currently zero rated aircraft), and a proposal has been tabled from their tax authorities to implement this from January 2008. There is no actual parliamentary agreement on this yet, but it is likely to proceed. A decision may not be ratified until December. However, we have been informed by the Danish Authorities that aircraft invoiced, but not necessarily paid for, before the end of December 2007 will NOT incur vat if the new rule is implemented. Obviously paperwork takes time, and December is a short working month, so if you want to guarantee an aircraft via the Danish route you must order the aircraft in November or the first week in December. We appreciate that this sounds like a sales pitch, but it is true, and confirmation can be obtained from the Danish authorities if needed. 2008 sales Gyroplane mania seems to be starting now, and as such we have increased our demand on our German factory to three per month from January, possibly increasing to four by the middle of the year. We have always seen lots of enquiries, but the key now is that they tend to follow with an order! This increased volume, reflected around the world, means that AutoGyro have increased production to five or six per week, and means more investment in the manufacturing processes. This year has seen new CNC machining centres, a new factory building, new pilot enclosure moulds and shapes, and more product development. We are even testing gyroplanes with floats in Sweden (see the info on this link.. www.gyrokopter.se)! This exciting development may be available in the UK next year.. Maximum Take Off Weight increase. Gyroplanes are not limited to 450Kg MTOW like microlights; the CAA Section T limit is 600Kg, and the factory builts to 560Kg under EASA/CAA rules. We Type Approved the MT at 450Kg because that was what had been approved in Germany (German Gyros were limited to this weight), and because insurance was only obtainable at that weight at that time. However, insurance is no longer an issue, and the MT will easily carry much more weight – it operates up to 560Kg in New Zealand. So what weight to go for? Now, CAA initial and annual permit fees for aircraft over 501Kg nearly double from that under 500Kg, so a gyro at 500Kg MTOW maintains the smaller running cost, and with an empty weight of 250Kg, this gives a massive 250Kg of payload. Full fuel, two large occupants, and capacity for baggage too – legally. Now that’s a novelty! We expect to complete the 500Kg MTOW testing later this month, and at this time with no planned aircraft changes. The approval is also planned to retrospective for the existing UK fleet. Servicing Whilst MT’s require little in the way of maintenance, there are engine and airframe checks required. We are very pleased to announce that our Service Engineer, Mr John Hereward, now has CAA authorisation to provide field maintenance support to our pilot owners. John offers a mobile workshop across the UK, as well as from our home airfield at the Midland Gliding Club, with full factory support. SPLASH This years SPLASH show is on the 24th and 25th November at the NEC. We’ll be there, as part of the British Rotorcraft Association stand, and look forward to meeting those of you that get there once again.
9th May 2007 A grand day out MT-03 pilot Shuhei Seki recently flew his Rotax 914 powered MT over Mont Blanc - you can see 16,000ft on the altimeter! The snowboarders below were, by all accounts, more than a little surprised to see him up there!
He also took his aircraft for a jaunt around the sand dunes of Morocco, over vast expanses of "mt" desert (groan!):
Hot, cold, high, low - you can tackle it all in an MT!
26th April 2007 Do you have problems with wind? Fed up with being stuck on the ground just because the windsock has gone past horizontal and its "too windy" to fly? Check out this video to see what an MT can do when all the other aircraft on the field are stuck in their hangars:
16th April 2007 Buy your MT-03 VAT FREE! Good News! Following substantial negotiation with the authorities, RSUK is now able to supply your aircraft to you VAT free. It's legal, above-board, and won't see HMR&C knocking on your door asking for money in a few months time. After allowing for the logistical costs you can expect to make a saving equivalent to approximately 50% of the vat cost of a base model aircraft, with the proportion rising if you take additional options. This means you can have a fabulous MT-03, ready to fly in the UK, for as little as £33k. Sounds too good to be true? Read on – and request a full price list today.... After many discussions with customers about the way in which our competitors try to show their product at a lower cost, we would like to remind you that we are the only company that supply a proper ‘turn key’ package. You order an aircraft, and we supply one – fully finished & ready to fly legally in the UK. At no extra cost we avoid some of the "extras" you may get from elsewhere:
.. and, very importantly, we have full engineering support in the UK with a spares inventory and service backup to CAA standards. The only normal extras over and above our list prices are;
There are no hidden costs – ask any of the 12 UK owners if you want to be sure! Where to see the MT-03 MT’s are now operating from many airfields – Wickenby, RAF Benson, Kirkbride, Little Snoring, Wombleton, and even farm strips. The remaining pilots under instruction in Kirkbride (with Chris Jones, full time instructor) are completing their training in record time, and plan to fly their aircraft home to Northern Ireland and to Lydd on the South coast over the coming weeks. RotorSport, with our demonstrator aircraft G-RSUK, will be at the Popham microlight show on 5th May (adjacent to the British Rotorcraft Association stand), and most of the major aviation events this year.
13th April 2007 Otmar's Antipodean Adventure! Otmar Birkner, owner of AutoGyro and manufacturer of the MT-03 is one of a group of four intrepid gyro pilots who are flying their MT-03s on an epic unsupported 13,500km flight around Australia. Follow their progress on the expedition website http://www.exfac.com/View_Expedition.php?expedition_id=4 It's a stick-up! If you want to personalise your gyro then why not try some of of our fantastic custom-made decals? Whether it's a set of shark's teeth, bug eyes or just the name of your website, we can supply and apply a full range of computer-cut graphics to met your needs.
20 March 2007 On the move! To the increasing UK demand for MT-03 gyroplanes we are moving to new, larger, premises in Shropshire. As well as giving us four-fold increase in office space and a huge dedicated workshop area, our new location puts us close to the airfield facilities at Welshpool and Shobdon. The new address is on the "Contact" page - you can still make contact via the existing mobile number and email. 24 February 2007 New Instructor UK-MT-03 owner #1 Steve Boxall has recently completed his Instructor training, and will soon be operating from Wickenby Airfield in Lincolnshire. Steve is the first UK instructor to be equipped with the MT-03, so if you are interested in a trial flight, PPL(G) training or an MT-03 type conversion you can contact him on 0790 505 9789, email steve@gyrotraining.co.uk or visit his website www.gyrotraining.co.uk 28 January 2007 On the "Squadron" page -Adrian and Phil at Carlisle with their MT's, plus the new Squadron Forum! 19 November 2006: Check out our new "MT-03 Squadron" page! The MT-03 Squadron is the name of the UK MT-03 owners club. Keep up with what the MT-heads are up to via the web page.
19 November 2006: See us at the SPLASH! aviation show at the NEC on the 2nd & 3rd if December. We'll be on the British Rotorcraft Association stand, where we'll have the latest spec MT-03 for you to take a look at. We're also expecting a number of MT-03 owners to be attending the show, so as well as talking to us you'll be able to share experiences with those who have already taken ownership of one of our fantastic machines. More details at http://www.sportaviation.org.uk . See you there!
24th September 2006: First MT-03 914 delivered!
On Sunday the first UK-spec Rotax 914 powered MT-03 was delivered to its new owner at Kirkbride airfield in Cumbria. The turbocharged Rotax 914 engine delivers 115hp, 15% more than the normally aspirated Rotax 912S, giving electrifying performance. Owner Norman Surplus will complete his flight training on the machine under the watchful eye of Instructor Chris Jones. 18th September 2006: New video! Check out the cool new video - includes load testing and flight footage 30th August 2006: Forging ahead! Now that the UK specification MT-03 is both in production and being supplied to the customers with Permits to Fly, we would like to advise you of the following: Aircraft Insurance. Many have commented on the unreasonable requirement of £1,500pa for passenger liability insurance from Traffords (on top of the third party insurance premium), which has made carrying passengers in gyros just too expensive for most owners. We are happy to say that, following the efforts of BRA member Dave Fairbrass, it is now possible to insure two seat gyros for £450 inclusive of third party and passenger liability. Contact On Risk on FREEPHONE 08000 43 93 42. The CAA have confirmed that the policy meets their requirements. MT-03 prices. An agreement has been made with the UK Revenue and Customs Dept whereby the vat payable on the MT-03 is the German vat only on the base aircraft without commission/UK costs. This will save any prospective owners about £1,500 over the prices including UK vat. The latest price list is available on request from RotorSport UK (just click here to email us). MT-03 joint ownership. One of our customers is looking to share the ownership of the MT-03 he has purchased. The red 912ULS powered aircraft is already in the UK, and only awaits registration and its Permit from the CAA before being ready to fly. If you are interested, please contact Philip Ashton on 07900 596 769, or email philipaa@btinternet.com. He is based near Lincoln, and wants to base the aircraft there too. MT’s flying! G-CDZZ is now flying regularly (whenever Steve can get in the air) from Askern, just north of Doncaster. G-CDYF will start from Little Snoring this weekend, provided the CAA get the Permit to Adam in time. G-YROX, a stunning yellow 914 powered machine, is awaiting a permit, and is expected to start training with Chris Jones and Norman on 25th September. There are more in the pipeline… Airshows. The main airshow season is now finished, ending with an incredibly wet Wallis Days in Norfolk, and nearly equally wet PFA Rally at Kemble. Whilst we will try to get to several of the various remaining fly-ins, the next main event for us will be the oddly named SPLASH! Airsports show at the NEC the first weekend in December. This is the first anniversary of the appearance of the MT within the UK, and will be a celebration of our success in bringing this exceptional aircraft to the UK market. We hope to see you there!
6th August 2006: FIRST UK-APPROVED MT-03 TAKES TO THE SKIES!!! Well, we made a little bit of history at the Askern airstrip today. The first ever BCAR Section-T compliant 2-seat factory-built gyroplane was delivered to it's new and very proud owner. After a couple of circuits with Gerry in the back seat Steve Boxall took to the skies for his first solo sortie. "I'm really pleased with how well it handles our short grass strip here at Askern" said Steve. "The aircraft took off and climbed away really well 2-up, but the solo performance is awesome! Everyone on the ground commented on how quiet the machine is, and it even fitted nicely in to the hangar!"
As you can see it was fairly warm today, so shorts and a big cheezy grin were the only pre-reqs! See you at Wallis Days!
28th July 2006: The Team at RotorSport UK Ltd are very pleased to announce that the CAA have today issued the Airworthiness Approval Notice (AAN29134) as the Type Approval for the RotorSport UK Ltd MT-03 two seat tandem gyroplane. The first aircraft, G-CDZZ, will be delivered to Steve Boxall on 6th August, fully built, ready to fly, complete with a UK CAA Permit to Fly. Exactly as we committed to achieve, albeit a little later than planned, at the SPLASH! Show at the NEC last November. Three more will be delivered to their new owners early August. What specification & colour do you want yours in?
21st July 2006: A couple of pictures of the new Rotax 914 powered machine which is now in the UK ready for flight test:
This machine has the new rear-seat windscreen, and has the oil cooler and radiator moved to a ducted location underneath the engine - which not only looks fantastic but also reduces noise by cleaning up the airflow to the propeller.
20th June 2006: Following the completion of the RotorSport UK Ltd flight test program, RSUK were very pleased to welcome Chris Taylor and Ray White from the CAA flight test department at Turweston today (20.6.06) for their independent CAA aircraft evaluation. Chris Taylor (CAA test pilot), trained on gyroplanes by David Beevers and Tony Melody, has already accumulated airtime in the VPM and single seat Bensen types. Ray White has significant experience over many years with most UK gyroplane types. During the day of flight tests Chris flew the aircraft both two up and solo, with either RSUK personnel or Ray White in the rear seat. The purpose of the program was to cross check the RSUK flight testing, and to satisfy the CAA that there were no hidden dangers in the type. The tests were thorough and exhaustive – both for the aircraft and the RSUK flight test team. RotorSport UK Ltd is therefore very pleased to advise that the flight performance of the UK specification MT-03 gyroplane, and the flight test program carried out by RSUK, met the requirements of the CAA. This means the way is now clear to complete the product documentation and enable release of the CAA Airworthiness Approval Notification (AAN) as the first two seat factory built gyroplane Type Approval ever in the UK. Once this is released, Permits to Fly will be issued for compliant UK MT’s, and the first aircraft will depart to the new owners in July. Later than planned, but sometimes being first takes that bit of extra time and effort…
13th June 2006:
Last Thursday the CAA flew the MT-03 as part of the flight test program interim review. The aircraft performed very well, and CAA Flight Test Department authorised the completion of the remainder of the program, which includes all the ‘edge of envelope’ testing. Subject to the great British weather, flight testing will complete this week, with a final Flight Test Review by the CAA next Tuesday & Wednesday. In turn, this means that supply of the MT-03 gyroplane to the UK market will commence over the next few weeks, beginning with G-CDZZ (pictured) for Steve Boxall – who kindly let us use his aircraft for part of the test program. Thanks too to Will Moore who took the photos. You can read all about Steve Boxall and Chris Jones' trip to the factory at Hildesheim in the latest edition of GyroFlight magazine. 13th May 2006: Check out the MT-03 on video by clicking here - it's a big file (6MB) so it takes a few minutes to download over broadband (and isn't recommended for dial-up users). 10th April 2006: RotorSport UK Ltd are very pleased to announce that,
after what seems like 6th April 2006:
UK Gyro Instructor Chris Jones (left) and pilot Steve Boxall are back from completing their MT-03 conversion training at the factory flight school in Hildesheim, Germany. "When we arrived and saw the weather I thought that we'd be stuck on the ground" said Steve. "With 25 knot winds blowing down over the local hills, rain and intermittent snow showers it didn't look good - until we strapped ourselves in to the machines and just flew through it all. The MT-03 just soaked up the turbulence, and the windscreens kept the weather off. Even the runway exercises (including the legendary "Hildesheim runway slalom") weren't a problem."
18th March 2006: RotorSport UK Ltd Announce CAA Company Approval We are very, very pleased to announce that yesterday (Friday 17th March) the CAA advised that the RotorSport UK Ltd A1 Approval Certificate for Gyroplane Design and Manufacture will be issued ‘shortly’. This follows the satisfactory completion of all company audits, including overseeing one carried out in Germany. A1 approval allows Rotorsport UK Ltd to manufacture and sell factory-built gyroplanes (autogyros) in the UK. This part of the UK-spec MT-03 implementation project has been completed on time, and we are very grateful for the help and assistance given by all those involved. RotorSport UK Ltd also expect to make a similar announcement shortly regarding the Permit to Test for the UK-spec MT-03. Yours happily, Gerry Speich
15 February 2006 (part 1) Chris Jones, the UK's only full-time gyro Instructor, will soon be travelling to the AutoGyro Europe factory near Hannover in Germany to undertake type training on the MT-03 with factory Instructor Thomas Kiggen. This means that from the 5th April 2006 Chris will be fully qualified to train new students or undertake conversion training for existing pilots on their MT-03. By undertaking his conversion training at the factory Chris will not only be the first MT-03 qualified Instructor in the UK, but will also be positioned to train UK pilots to get the most out of their new machines. Chris will be attending the London Airshow (see below) so you'll be able to talk to him there about flight training and his experiences with the MT-03. Chris offers training from his base at Kirkbride in Cumbria or by arrangement from your local airfield, so give him a call on 07796 955 805 or contact him via email. 15 February 2006 (part 2) Come and See the MT-03 at the Fly! - The London Airshow The MT-03 will be on display on the British Rotorcraft Association stand at the London Airshow on 21st to 23rd April 2006. It's an ideal opportunity to see the MT-03 in the flesh and talk to us about this fantastic aircraft. For more information about the show take a look at the London Airshow website. 25th January 2006 More from Gerry: "It’s only been a matter of three weeks since I wrote the last missive, and so much has gone on. The biggest challenge has been obtaining a decision from the CAA and EASA as to who had responsibility for factory built gyroplanes, which has been an issue ever since EASA was created, and never resolved. The lack of this decision had prevented any further progress, as officially the CAA could not accept my application for company approval, and could only release a Permit to Test as a homebuilt aircraft. So I applied formally to EASA for a gyroplane type approval, and forced the system (I believe the other manufacturers have been pushing hard too) to respond. Within days (just over a week ago), the CAA made a decision, which was that they would manage gyros, factory or home built, up to 560Kg. Whilst this has been advised to EASA, EASA have not yet reached an internal conclusion as to how they will proceed, but are unlikely to challenge the CAA’s decision. This in turn means that all gyros supplied to the UK market must meet Section T, and manufacturers can be approved to the normal A1 or EASA Part 21 system. The result of all this is that RotorSport UK Ltd is now well on the way towards an A1 Approval, which will allow the first aircraft to be supplied to their owners under this umbrella, on plan in March 2006. It also unlocks the flight testing door, which is key for those owners too! It is, however, and as the CAA keep telling me, a very aggressive timing plan, and I am in their hands. And if any of you are serious about having one of these aircraft for this summer, then you need to get your order in. The aircraft has been launched in several other European countries, and production slots are limited."
2nd January 2006 An update from Gerry Speich, Managing director of RotorSport UK: Introduction progress is on plan at this time, with the Structural Submission to Section T issue 3 now complete. This major step, being both the first two seater gyroplane ever shown compliant to this standard, and the first gyroplane to version 3, was not without it’s challenges, both in terms of the ‘how to’ as well as the results interpretation. As one would expect, the submission made just before the launch at the NEC required some fine tuning and further evaluation, and in some cases design modification, resulting in an aircraft and compliance standard that is now a benchmark for others to beat. This means that the next step is the formal flight test programme. As some will know, the aircraft that was at the NEC is now registered as D-MKKI, and is flying on flight evaluation and test from Coventry Airport. Over the next week it will be updated to the exact specification submitted for the structural submission, ready for the CAA Permit to Test, at which point it will become G-RSUK. The first formal flight test plan review will be at Gatwick on Tuesday the 3rd January – what better way to start the New Year! Subject to weather and the agreed plan the programme should be complete in matter of weeks, and then will only need the CAA’s own internal flight test plan in late January/ early February. Many of you saw the aircraft at the SPLASH! Show at the NEC, and some were even impressed enough to order one. Currently I have three firm orders, and two tentative, the first due for delivery at the end of March 2006. At this time I plan only two per month for UK sale (Autogyro Europe have already sold 40% of next years production), so it's first come, first served! If you would like to be added to our mailing list and automatically receive news updates from us, please send an email to club@rotorsport.org and we'll make sure that you are kept up to date. 25 November 2005 RotorSport UK launch the MT-03 RotorSport UK launch the new MT-03 UK gyroplane at the SPLASH show at the NEC. Gerry Speich, Managing Director of RotorSport UK, said "We are delighted to be able to offer this truly outstanding machine to pilots in the UK. I believe that the MT-03 will be the vehicle to take UK autogyro flying in to the 21st century. This is the first time that a factory built BCAR Section-T compliant 2-seat autogyro has been offered in the UK, and we are tremendously excited about the way in which it will revolutionise both flight training and private flying in this country. We will be talking to a huge number of both current and prospective gyro pilots over the coming days and months, and pretty soon we'll be able to take them flying so that they can truly appreciate what a huge leap forward this machine represents."
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Serial number
21 goes to a special home – Chris Jones, the only UK full time
instructor, operating out of Kirkbride near Carlisle, will take
delivery in about three weeks time. We wish him every success, and
those wishing to book lessons should call him on 07796955805. Steve
Boxall (07905059789) continues to offer training in his MT-03 out of
Wickenby, and Phil Harwood will shortly be offering instruction in
his. Of course the other UK instructors are also happy to instruct
on the MT, and telephone numbers are available via the BRA website
During
their two day visit Chris flew for six hours and Steve brought his time on
the machine up to five and a half hours. "It's an excellent training
machine which does exactly what it says on the tin" reported Chris.
"We had a great time at Hildesheim, where we received a warm welcome and
had the opportunity to tour the impressive factory facilities." One
big surprise for Chris was the "engine off" landing practice - with the
engine actually turned off! Chris is now qualified to undertake
training on the MT-03 back in the UK, and already has students lined up to
undertake both conversion and ab-initio pilot training. Chris can be
contacted on