Grinvalds Orion
Grinvalds · France · first flew 1981 · light aircraft
The Grinvalds Orion is one of the earliest composite kit and homebuilt aircraft, with a single pusher engine and two or four seats.
Recognition (WEFT)
| W — Wings | Low-mounted, tapered |
|---|---|
| E — Engines | 1 × piston, fuselage-mounted |
| F — Fuselage | 7.75 m fuselage |
| T — Tail | T-tail |
WEFT is AircraftIQ's four-point recognition method — how it works.
Spot it by:
- Low cantilever wing with a T-tail
- Pusher engine placing the cabin well ahead of the wing leading edge
- Kevlar-reinforced glass fibre construction with foam-filled wings
The wings have 4.5 degrees of dihedral and straight edges that are only slightly tapered.
Specifications
- The Grinvalds Orion has a length of 7.75 m (25 ft).
- It has a wingspan of 8.9 m (29 ft).
- Its maximum speed is 330 km/h (205 mph).
- Typical crew: 1.
Figures are for the representative variant described above; marks differ. See how AircraftIQ sources figures.
History
It was designed in 1975 and first flew on 2 June 1981 as the plans-built G-801, a two-seater with a 65 hp engine. The kit-built G-802 had a wider cabin and first flew in November 1983.
Variants
Builders gave their aircraft names such as the Darcissac-Grinvalds DG-87 Goeland. The unrelated AA200 Orion of 1988 shared only the basic configuration.
Where you'll see it
It was built in France and the United States in small numbers, with more than 17 built. By early 1985 140 plans for the G-801 and 80 G-802 kits had been sold.
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