From The Cockpit – Victa Airtourer

Victa Airtourer

Amongst sports aviation enthusiasts scattered in many countries worldwide, the Australian Victa Airtourer is an enjoyed and well-liked light aeroplane.

However, an article about the Airtourer cannot be written without touching upon politics, commercial realities and national aviation pride- and for the home audience – without a twinge of regret for a long-term venture that might have been.

The Airtourer originated as a Henry Millicer design which was entered in the 1953 competition held by the Royal Aero Club of Great Britain for a new two-seat light aircraft design. Dr Millicer’s design won, against an enormous field of 103 others. Work on a wooden prototype was commenced by the Airtourer Group of the Ultralight Aircraft Association of Australia. Fitted with a 65hp Continental engine, the prototype flew for the first time on the 31st March 1959.

Testing progressed well and the Millicer Airtourer project was taken up by Victa Ltd, the famous lawnmower manufacturers. Victa formed an Aviation Division in September 1959 for the specific purpose of building a minimum of fifty Airtourers. A purpose-built facility appeared at Sydney’s Bankstown airport, and production development was commenced. The prototype of the Victa AT100, O-200-A powered and of metal construction, flew for the first time on the 12th December 1961; the first production-standard aircraft flew mid-June 1962 and Australian Department of Civil Aviation Type Approval was achieved on 4th July 1962.

Following closely, the AT115 was developed – a similar aeroplane to the AT100, except for it being powered by the 115hp Lycoming 0-235-C1B engine. The prototype flew on September 17, 1962 and DCA Type Approval was received in early July, 1963.

Airtourer 100/115 sales picked up and exceeded expectations. To meet the demand Victa expanded the programme and bY early 1965, the number of Aviation Division employees was up to about 370. The Airtourer sold well, not only in Australia but overseas as well, particularly in the UK and New Zealand. In the UK GlosAir at Cheltenham undertook some assemblage, and what has become the Airtourer Club flourishes to this day. However in selling the Airtourers, Victa had to compete with the dump pricing of American light planes on their overseas markets, including Australia (it was approaching the heyday of Cessna and Piper mass production which eventuated into stockpiling). Put simply, (hopefully without unfairly oversimplifying the state of affairs), Victa lobbied the Federal Government for either import tariffs or price subsidization – albeit unsuccessfully.

At the same time, the Division continued with product development, in the form of a four-seat light aircraft called the Aircruiser. Design work on the Aircruiser 210 commenced in early 1964. A similarly styled aircraft to the Airtourer, the all-metal Aircruiser had a left side door for cabin entry and was powered by the 210hp Rolls Royce Continental 1O-360-D six-cylinder engine. With a mere 24001b MTOW, the aircraft evinced a good performance cruise speed 148 knots, sea level rate of climb 1200fpm, and takeoff distance from grass, 1200ft to 50ft height. The Aircruiser prototype was completed, flown and tested.

In early 1966 Victa took the decision to indefinitely cease Airtourer production, reputedly in order to concentrate its resources upon Aircruiser development and tooling. Whether this was representative of a Company’s belief in the greater financial viability of the Aircruiser is a matter for conjecture, but it is an indication of an overall negative cash flow from Airtourer production and sales. Airtourers which were then on the line were completed, but production was never restarted. Instead the designs, tooling and spares to the Victa range were sold in the early 1970s to New Zealand Aerospace Limited, who reworked the Aircruiser to make the CT-4.

A total of 172 Victas of both types had been built. I worked for some time with the piloUsalesman of the craft for the UK, who spoke with much affection of his days of busy Airtourer selling across GB and Ireland, and in particular of its pleasant aerobatic qualities: included was a custom developed outsize {low g) barrel roll, the self-titled ‘Champagne roll’, exciting to the least adventurous because of its unstressful loading. The closure of the Victa line was particularly poignant- the news of the decision was broken one Monday morning after a five aeroplane deal had been agreed with an English aero club over the weekend.

The Victa Airtourer is a fully aerobatic two-seat monoplane, of conventional semi-monocoque metal construction; principally light alloy with rivet fastening. The single spar stubby wings cover a mere 26ft in span, giving a wing area of 120sq. ft. The full-span flaps/ailerons are innovatively interconnected: lowering the flaps droops the ailerons alsp, whilst movement of the control column deflects the flaps differentially with the ailerons.

The fixed tricycle undercarriage consists of spring steel main gear, and a coil spring and shocker on the steerable noseleg. The fuselage sits tail low, almost duck-like, on the landing gear. Conventional empennage consists of upright fin/rudder and low-mounted tailplane and elevator, the elevator being located rearward of the rudder. This geometric arrangement of the tailplane and fin is generally chosen for the purpose of enhancing an aeroplane’s spin qualities; however in my experience with aircraft having this empennage configuration a side effect appears to be rudder lightness {and can tend to mask directional stability).

At the working end of the Victa there is a RR Continental 0-200-A driving a McCauley 69 inch diameter prop in the base of the AT100, and a Lycoming C-235-C1B engine driving a 70. 5 inch McCauley prop in the case of the AT115.

Accommodation in the Airtourer is for two people, seated sideby-side in the enclosed cabin under a very large perspex canopy. The seats are particularly comfortable and the controls satisfactorily arranged. The control column is centrally located and has a spade grip for operation by either pilot. Actuation of the hydraulic disc brakes on the main wheels is achieved by extension of a Tee handle on the centre console. The aircraft’s single fuel tank is a rubber bag type centrally located in the wing, behind and below the seats. The tank filling point is on the right hand side of the fuselage near the trailing edge of the wing and is connected to the bag tank by a 90° band filling tube. This makes for an unusual but quaint design of fuel dipstick: to articulate the bend, the dipstick is segmented, the pieces threaded on a cord, normally sprung-tensioned but which is collapsible by pressing a release knob on the end of the dipstick.

Ingenious but effective, and also quite necessary, particularly for aerobatics – where, with two on board, aerobatic MTOW limits the fuel quantity in the tank to 16 Imp Gal (72 litres). Aerobatic MTOW was 1550Ib for both the V100 and 115, compared to normal MTOW of 1650Ib. For touring this allows, for an empty equipped weight of about 10801b, maybe 20Ib of baggage with two on board and full fuel; giving a range of about 630 miles with reserves for the V115. For flight planning, a cruise TAS of 100 knots is a reasonable round figure (V115).

The primary aircraft categorisations for the Victa are two-fold: many served usefully as trainers (and could do so again) and  unquestionably it is an ideal sportsplane. The Victa Airtourer 115 was my first endorsement following APPL training on a Cessna 172. The two aircraft I soon observed were as different in handling as chalk and cheese. The 115’s tapered wings are short and stubby: seemingly the relatively wide fuselage occupies much of its area, and with the large and cambered canopy (also the wing flaps extending across under the fuselage with a split flap segment), the impression is gained that a substantial fraction of the total lift may be body lift from the fuselage.

Both the elevator and aileron control circuits have centering springs incorporated, enhancing control feel and increasing static stabilities about the longitudinal and lateral axes. The rudder is quite light in feel, less than the benchmark ideal control force ratio of 1:2:4/aileron: elevator: rudder, but nevertheless in my opinion providing a far more pleasant rudder feel than on the 172. In fact, I quickly developed the habit of flying the Victa with my feet squarely on the pedals end clear of the cockpit floor (a good rudder trainer also, as a definite rudder movement is required for turn coordination).

Once seated and strapped in the full five-point harness, the arrangement of the cockpit and controls comes easily to hand. Start and taxi are straightforward, assisted by the dual throttles, one provided on each of the far left and right sides of the instrument subpanel; nosewheel steering is light, brake operation satisfactory although actuation requires the right hand to be free from the control column.

In the air the appeal of the Airtourer is hard to resist. I remember, after the Skyhawk, finding it an eye-opener- “a Spitfire in comparison”, my endorsing instructor described it. Handling about all three axes is direct and responsive, particularly pitch and roll; as already mentioned, a good coordination trainer also, as the aileron adverse yaw requires timely and positive use of rudder. It is the Airtourer’s pleasant handling qualities that make it an attractive sportsplane to many – in the same way a contemporary lightplane, such as the Super 2, is appealing as a fun plane to fly. Apart from ab initio, the Airtourer is most useful also as a trainer for elementary aerobatics – loops, barrel rolls, stall turns, Cuban eights etc. can be learnt well. Under negative g however, the carburetted engine cuts, so that slow rolls, hesitation rolls, and rolls off-the-top can be accomplished only under the handicap of a higher entry speed to account for the additional loss of speed through part of the manoeuvre with engine-out. Spinning does not seem to be the V115’s forte – an incipient spin more often than not tends to develop into a spiral dive.

Visibility from the Airtourer is excellent, and nowhere is this appreciated better then in or near the circuit. Likewise runway view on final approach to a normal landing leaves nothing to the imagination. (Minimum approach speed 70kts IAS, never let it go below I was warned, or further wash off of speed may come quickly, with an attendant stall a possibility). Mechanical lowering of the flaps is accomplished using the flap handles neatly recessed in the cockpit sides. Unlike larger winged light aircraft such as the C172 for example, the Airtourer has little float on landing.

If there is one light aeroplane which has a continuing sequel it is the Airtourer. In the 1970s NZ Aerospace’s CT-4 development was marketed quite successfully, including to the RAAF, and to many of us such a state of affairs was simply a further example of the Australian cringe from self-belief and efficient investment in the local aircraft industry – which has been perpetuated with the Nomad and Wamira debacle.

Airtourer spares, jigs, dies and tools were bought from NZ Aerospace in 1980 by the purposefully formed Airtourer Cooperative Limited, headed by the Airtourer Association President Sonny Rankin. The Co-operative has most recently sought Expressions of Interest for the re-establishment of the Airtourer production line using the store jigs and tooling, seeking royalties as the only reimbursement. I, for one, hope very much that the endeavour is once again taken up – not simply for reasons of nationalistic altruism, but because it would make good commercial sense: over the last half-century sports and training aircraft designs have been shown to be pretty well timeless. In specification the Airtourer is not too far removed from the new generation trainers coming out of Europe; the flying qualities of the Super 2 for example and those of the Airtourer I find as having much in common. The Airtourer is already certificated in a number of countries and the trainer replacement will, before long, be profligate.

The popularity of Victa Airtourers has kept local prices for the aircraft up and acquisition entails a significant investment. It is an investment because in contemporary times, Victas have more than retained their value – a situation which should continue unless perhaps if production of the aeroplane resumed.

UK used light aeroplane prices are generally substantially lower than those within Australia. Typically an Airtourer will list in the UK at about £5-7000 and consequently, consideration should be given to overseas purchase and importation, but with caution also as the cost of transportation and Australian registration may be as much as the overseas purchase price. Buying locally at between $10,000 and $15,000 would seem a better option.

Next Issue: We examine the highly regarded Mooney M20 range of high performance singles. Don’t miss it!