IIL IS-8
Intreprinderea de Industrie Locală (IIL) · Romania · first flew 1960 · glider
The IIL IS-8 was a two-seat sailplane designed by Iosif Șilimon and built in Romania in 1960. It served with Romanian gliding clubs.
Recognition (WEFT)
| W — Wings | High-mounted, swept |
|---|---|
| E — Engines | 1 × none, embedded-mounted |
| F — Fuselage | Airbrakes on the fuselage sides under the wing, not on the wings |
| T — Tail | Conventional |
WEFT is AircraftIQ's four-point recognition method — how it works.
Spot it by:
- Shoulder-wing cantilever monoplane with wings swept forward by 7 degrees at quarter chord
- Tandem two-seat cockpit under a long, smoothly contoured three-part perspex canopy
- Airbrakes on the fuselage sides under the wing, not on the wings
The wings had an all-wood structure with 2.5 degrees of dihedral, a constant-chord inner section and strongly tapered outer panels, with small streamlined bodies at the tips. The horizontal tail sat on top of the fuselage, and the main landing gear was a fixed monowheel under mid-wing.
Specifications
- The IIL IS-8 has a length of 7.35 m (24 ft).
- It has a wingspan of 13.35 m (44 ft).
- Its maximum speed is 180 km/h (112 mph).
- Typical crew: 2.
Figures are for the representative variant described above; marks differ. See how AircraftIQ sources figures.
History
Șilimon was Romania's most prominent glider designer from about 1950 until his death in 1981. The IS-8, a two-seat shoulder-wing cantilever monoplane, first flew on 14 September 1960.
Variants
The IS-8 was preferred over the earlier two-seat IIL IS-7 as a production aircraft for Romanian clubs because of its economy and simple maintenance.
Where you'll see it
It served Romanian clubs as a trainer and solo aircraft. Some sources state that it was not cleared for aerobatics, while others say it served as an aerobatic aircraft too.
Related aircraft
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