AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 72
Fowler built the pyro racks, and they are strapped
underneath the airplane's wings. During his routine,
he reaches speeds up to 230 mph. The aircraft has
a G-force limit of plus-5 Gs and minus-2 Gs. Fowler
delights in dazzling spectators with his unique
aerobatic display.
It's quite fun to hear Fowler tell the story; he looks like he is having almost as
much fun telling it as performing it in his Long-EZ. " I can guarantee that anyone
shorter than four feet will tell you this is their favorite airplane at the airshow.
Kids just love it. " One little girl named it the " butterfly airplane " and another
called it the " yellow banana pickle fork. "
Fowler grins. " I have no idea where that came from. "
SPEC SHEET
Long-EZ
Powerplant / Lycoming IO-320 160 hp
Seats / 2
Length / 16 ft 10 in
Height / 7 ft 10 in
Wingspan / 26 ft 1 in
Wing area / 81.99 sq ft
Empty weight / 920 lb
Fuel capacity / 52 gal
Max speed / 230 mph
Cruise speed / 184 mph
Range / 2,010 mi
Rate of climb / 1,750 ft/min
Service ceiling / 27,000 ft
It's easy being yellow
In addition to the aerobatics and the pyrotechnics, airshow visitors are also very
curious about the Long-EZ. Rutan designed the Long-EZ after his first designs
caught on in the late 1970s. He envisioned an airplane that would not stall, therefore
not spin, and employed a canard to prevent the main wing from stalling.
Canards are smaller wings (lift-providing horizontal surfaces) mounted forward
of the aircraft's main wings (I think like little Tyrannosaurus hands). He
added large ailerons to vary the wings' camber. Dick Rutan and Mike Melvill flew
the best-selling homebuilt around the world in 1997 (the same year singer John
Denver crashed his Long-EZ off the coast of California).
Fowler delights in showing off his aircraft's unique design. When visitors ask
where's the nosewheel and, how do you get into the aircraft, Fowler performs a
demonstration. First, he picks up the aircraft by the nose and cranks the nosewheel
down from inside. He puts his hands on the nose; " I have to hold it down
or the weight of the engine will flip it over, " he says dramatically. " Then I climb
in. I don't have to do dead lifts at the gym anymore. "
He's the one who says he " wears it " and says the snug cockpit is comfortable
and like sitting in a La-Z-Boy. " The side stick is super responsive, " he adds.
The airframe is foam core construction with a fiberglass overlay. Long-EZs
are usually white or lighter colors because darker colors cause the airframe to
delaminate if overheated. ArtCraft specially painted Fowler's Long-EZ with electroluminescent
paint so when lit at night, it shines. The racks of pyrotechnics
72
AOPA PILOT / February 2024
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024
Contents
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - Intro
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - Cover1
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - Cover2
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 1
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - Contents
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 3
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 4
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 5
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 6
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 7
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 8
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 9
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 10
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 11
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 12
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 13
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 14
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 15
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 16
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 17
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 18
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 19
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 20
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 21
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 22
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 23
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 24
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 25
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 26
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 27
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 28
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 29
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 30
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 31
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 32
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 33
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 34
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 35
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 36
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 37
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 38
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 39
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 40
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 41
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 42
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 43
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 44
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 45
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 46
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 47
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 48
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - R-1
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - R-2
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - R-3
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - R-4
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 49
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 50
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 51
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 52
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 53
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 54
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 55
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 56
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 57
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 58
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 59
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 60
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 61
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 62
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 63
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 64
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 65
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 66
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 67
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 68
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 69
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 70
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 71
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 72
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 73
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 74
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 75
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 76
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 77
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 78
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 79
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 80
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 81
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 82
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 83
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 84
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 85
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 86
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 87
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 88
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 89
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 90
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 91
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 92
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 93
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 94
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 95
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 96
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 97
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 98
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 99
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 100
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 101
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 102
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 103
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 104
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 105
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 106
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 107
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 108
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 109
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 110
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 111
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - 112
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - Cover3
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2024 - Cover4
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