St Croix Pietenpol Aerial
{{Short description|American homebuilt aircraft}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2022}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2022}}
| {{Infobox aircraft begin
| name= Pietenpol Aerial | image= | caption= }}{{Infobox aircraft type | type=Homebuilt aircraft | national origin=United States | manufacturer=St Croix Aircraft | designer=Chad and Charles Wille | first flight=1977 | introduced= | retired= | status= Production completed | primary user= | more users= | produced= | number built=at least one | developed from= St Croix Pietenpol Aircamper | variants with their own articles= }} |
The St Croix Pietenpol Aerial is an American homebuilt aircraft that was designed by Chad and Charles Wille and produced by St Croix Aircraft of Corning, Iowa, first flown in 1977. When it was available the aircraft was supplied in the form of plans for amateur construction, with partial kits available.Purdy, Don: AeroCrafter - Homebuilt Aircraft Sourcebook, Fifth Edition, page 248. BAI Communications, 15 July 1998. {{ISBN|0-9636409-4-1}}
Design and development
The Pietenpol Aerial was conceived as a biplane adaptation of the Pietenpol Air Camper parasol wing homebuilt design. The design work was completed in 1974 and the first example flown in 1977, with the plans as supplemental drawings to the Aircamper plans. The resulting aircraft features a biplane layout, two separate tandem open cockpits with individual windshields, fixed conventional landing gear and a single engine in tractor configuration.
The aircraft is made from a combination of wood and welded steel tubing, all covered in doped aircraft fabric. Its {{convert|29.50|ft|m|1|abbr=on}} span wing has four ailerons and has a combined wing area of {{convert|250.0|sqft|m2|abbr=on}}. The lower wing is removable, allowing the aircraft to fly as an Aircamper parasol monoplane. The cabin width is {{convert|24|in|cm|abbr=on}}. The acceptable power range is {{convert|85|to|150|hp|kW|0|abbr=on}} and the standard engine used is the {{convert|125|hp|kW|0|abbr=on}} Continental O-240 powerplant.
The aircraft has a typical empty weight of {{convert|700|lb|kg|abbr=on}} and a gross weight of {{convert|1300|lb|kg|abbr=on}}, giving a useful load of {{convert|600|lb|kg|abbr=on}}. With full fuel of {{convert|25|u.s.gal}} the payload for the pilot, passenger and baggage is {{convert|450|lb|kg|abbr=on}}.
The designers estimated the construction time from the supplied plans as 1200 hours.
Flight testing showed that the aircraft has shorter take-off and landing distances that the standard Aircamper, a lower stall speed and better stability in turbulence. The standard day, sea level, no wind, take off with a {{convert|125|hp|kW|0|abbr=on}} engine is {{convert|200|ft|m|0|abbr=on}} and the landing roll is {{convert|400|ft|m|0|abbr=on}}.
Operational history
By 1998, the company reported that 400 sets of plans had been sold.
In February 2014, one example was registered in the United States with the Federal Aviation Administration.{{cite web|url = http://registry.faa.gov/aircraftinquiry/AcftRef_Results.aspx?Mfrtxt=&Modeltxt=PIETENPOL+AERIAL&PageNo=1|title = Make / Model Inquiry Results|accessdate = 25 February 2014|last = Federal Aviation Administration|date = 25 February 2014}}
Specifications (Pietenpol Aerial)
{{Aircraft specs
|prime units?=imp
|genhide=
|crew=one
|capacity=one passenger
|length m=
|length ft=19
|length in=6
|length note=
|span m=
|span ft=29
|span in=6
|span note=
|height m=
|height ft=
|height in=
|height note=
|wing area sqm=
|wing area sqft=250.0
|wing area note=
|aspect ratio=
|airfoil=
|empty weight kg=
|empty weight lb=700
|empty weight note=
|gross weight kg=
|gross weight lb=1300
|gross weight note=
|fuel capacity={{convert|25|u.s.gal}}
|more general=
|eng1 number=1
|eng1 name=Continental O-240
|eng1 type=four cylinder, air-cooled, four stroke aircraft engine
|eng1 kw=
|eng1 hp=125
|prop blade number=2
|prop name=wooden fixed pitch
|prop dia m=
|prop dia ft=
|prop dia in=
|prop note=
|perfhide=
|max speed kmh=
|max speed mph=105
|max speed kts=
|max speed note=
|cruise speed kmh=
|cruise speed mph=85
|cruise speed kts=
|cruise speed note=
|stall speed kmh=
|stall speed mph=36
|stall speed kts=
|stall speed note=
|never exceed speed kmh=
|never exceed speed mph=
|never exceed speed kts=
|never exceed speed note=
|range km=
|range miles=150
|range nmi=
|range note=
|endurance=
|ceiling m=
|ceiling ft=1000
|ceiling note=
|g limits=
|roll rate=
|glide ratio=
|climb rate ms=
|climb rate ftmin=
|climb rate note=
|time to altitude=
|sink rate ms=
|sink rate ftmin=
|sink rate note=
|lift to drag=
|wing loading kg/m2=
|wing loading lb/sqft=5.2
|wing loading note=
|power/mass=
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|more performance=
|avionics=
}}