ADI Bumble Bee
Aircraft Designs Inc · United States · first flew 1983 · light aircraft
The ADI Bumble Bee, sometimes the Hollmann Bumble Bee, is an ultralight gyrocopter marketed by Aircraft Designs Inc.
Recognition (WEFT)
| W — Wings | High-mounted, rotary |
|---|---|
| E — Engines | 1 × piston, fuselage-mounted |
| F — Fuselage | 3 m fuselage |
| T — Tail | Conventional |
WEFT is AircraftIQ's four-point recognition method — how it works.
Spot it by:
- Open frame built on a keel tube carrying the nose wheel, pilot's seat, engine and rotor assembly
- Rotax 447 engine in pusher configuration
- Horizontal tailplane with a large fin and rudder
A tiny open-frame gyrocopter with a pusher engine and a low-inertia rotor.
Specifications
- The ADI Bumble Bee has a length of 3 m (10 ft).
- It has a wingspan of 7 m (23 ft).
- Its maximum speed is 91 km/h (57 mph).
- Typical crew: 1.
Figures are for the representative variant described above; marks differ. See how AircraftIQ sources figures.
History
It was designed by Martin Hollmann and first flew in 1983. It can be built to comply with the US FAR 103 ultralight rules.
Variants
The 40 hp Rotax 447 is the specified engine, and a 38.5 hp Kawasaki 440 has also been used.
Where you'll see it
It is available in plans form for homebuilding, with construction estimated at 400 hours, much of it spent fabricating the composite rotor blades.
Related aircraft
AircraftIQ — the aircraft field guide: 8,606 recognition guides, live overhead identification, works offline.