AOPA Turbine Pilot Magazine - November 2021 - 63

Bearhawk Aircraft 4-Place that he found after doing research in
2000. As a plans-built airplane, the Bearhawk 4-Place remained
an undiscovered gem until Goldberg approached designer Bob
Barrows about producing a quick-build kit. Goldberg fashioned a
factory in his home-away-from-home and instructed his adopted
family how to build, run, and supervise an aircraft manufacturing
facility in Mexico.
The aircraft, which is simply known as " the Bearhawk " even
though it's the flagship for derivatives spanning
two to six seats, has since proved so
popular that orders are backed up for over
a year. Goldberg attributes the increased
appeal to the availability of the quick-build
airplane kits and the parts kits he pioneered
in 2001.
About 200 plans- and kit-built Bearhawk
4-Place airplanes are flying in the United
States, Brazil, Canada, Australia, New
Zealand, and Europe-and more than 1,700
plans have been sold in the past 20 years. Several Bearhawks have
accumulated more than 1,000 hours. About 75 percent of the
Bearhawks built have six-cylinder Lycoming O-540 engines and
about a quarter of them have four-cylinder Lycomings. Goldberg
said the advantages of the Bearhawk line, " apart from how good
they fly, " is " how ruggedly they're designed and built. The 4130 steel
tubing fuselages are quite stout. " The all-metal, completely flushriveted
wing is designed by " 100-percent old-school mechanical
engineer Bob Barrows, " said Goldberg, and incorporates a Harry
Riblett airfoil, which contributes to docile stall characteristics, gentle
slow-speed manners, impressive short field performance, and
cruise efficiency. " There's not a round-head rivet in the breeze " to
create parasitic drag, he said.
The 2024 T3 aluminum used is the same material found in certified
aircraft from manufacturers including Beechcraft, Cessna,
and Piper. Some kit aircraft manufacturers use a cheaper grade
of aluminum known as 6061 T6, which Goldberg said cost half as
much, but is 40 percent weaker. " So, what it
means, is that if you use a cheaper material,
you can obviously sell your kits cheaper, but
you also don't have the serious rugged structure
like Bob Barrows designs. "
Two oversize cockpit doors make entry
and exit easy, and a spacious baggage area
opens to an adjacent back-seat door. The
rear fuselage accommodates a six-foot
loading area. He said the airplane is " larger
in every dimension " than a Cessna 172
Skyhawk and compares favorably with utility aircraft including a
Maule, a Cessna 180 Skywagon, and a Cessna 182 Skylane.
Barrows' design
Barrows' no-frills approach to designing aircraft is well-known to
homebuilders. The aluminum wing is more efficient than a fabric
wing and has a " good, sturdy design, " Barrows said in an instructional
YouTube video. The single-strut wing exhibits good lift,
low drag, and low pitching moments, which contribute to higher
AOPA PILOT / November 2021
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AOPA Turbine Pilot Magazine - November 2021

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