Wombat Gyrocopters
| Company type | Privately held company |
|---|---|
| Industry | Aerospace |
| Founded | 1991 |
| Founder | Chris Julian |
| Defunct | 1997 |
| Fate | Out of business following the death of the founder |
| Headquarters | , |
| Products | Kit aircraft |
Wombat Gyrocopters was a British aircraft manufacturer based in St Columb, Cornwall and founded in 1991 by Chris Julian. The company specialized in the design and manufacture of autogyros in the form kits for amateur construction.[1]
Julian was known as a motorcycle speedway racer. The company was formed by Julian to manufacture kits for his Wombat autogyro design. On 4 November 1991 the CAA issued the Wombat a restricted Permit to Test, allowing test flights to commence. In May 1997, when Julian was 60 years old, he was killed in the crash of a different model gyroglider at the Kemble airfield and that ended the enterprise.[1][2]
After Julian's death the rights to the Wombat design passed in July 2000 to former helicopter pilot Mark Harrisson. Harrisson had intended to put the aircraft back into production, but this plan was not completed. In 2013 he donated the prototype to The Helicopter Museum in Weston-super-Mare, where it arrived on 9 July 2013 and remains on display in the autogyro section of the museum.[2][3][4]
A total of four Wombats were registered in the United Kingdom with the CAA. All later had their registrations cancelled by the CAA.[5]
Aircraft
[edit]| Model name | First flight | Number built | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wombat Gyrocopters Wombat | 1991 | at least 4 | Single seat autogyro |
References
[edit]- ^ a b Purdy, Don: AeroCrafter - Homebuilt Aircraft Sourcebook, Fifth Edition, page 335. BAI Communications, 15 July 1998. ISBN 0-9636409-4-1
- ^ a b "Julian Wombat Arrival". hmfriends.org.uk. Retrieved 6 April 2015.
- ^ "The Helicopter Museum to receive Wombat gyrocopter - Vertical Magazine - The Pulse of the Helicopter Industry". verticalmag.com. Retrieved 6 April 2015.
- ^ "Wombat for Helicopter Museum". rotor.com. Archived from the original on 12 April 2015. Retrieved 6 April 2015.
- ^ CAA (6 April 2015). "GINFO Search Results Summary". Retrieved 6 April 2015.