The Farrington Twinstar is an American two-seat autogyro that was designed and produced by Farrington Aircraft of Paducah, Kentucky, a company owned by Don Farrington. Now out of production, when it was available the aircraft was supplied as a kit for amateur construction.^[1] It first flew in 1993.^[2]

Design and development

The aircraft was designed to comply with the US Experimental - Amateur-built aircraft rules. It features a single main rotor, a two-seats-in tandem open cockpit with a windshield, tricycle landing gear without wheel pants, plus a tail caster. The tail consists of two vertical stabilizers and rudders. The acceptable power range is 120 to 180 hp (89 to 134 kW) and the standard engine used is a four-cylinder, air-cooled, four-stroke, dual-ignition 150 hp (112 kW) Lycoming O-320 in pusher configuration. The cabin width is 24 in (61 cm).^[1]

The aircraft fuselage is made from a combination of welded steel and bolted-together aluminum tubing, with a fiberglass cockpit fairing. Its two-bladed rotor has a diameter of 30 ft (9.1 m). The aircraft has a typical empty weight of 700 lb (320 kg) and a gross weight of 1,200 lb (540 kg), giving a useful load of 500 lb (230 kg). With full fuel of 20 U.S. gallons (76 L; 17 imp gal) the payload for the pilot, passengers and baggage is 380 lb (170 kg).^[1]

The standard day, sea level, no wind, take off with a 150 hp (112 kW) engine is 200 ft (61 m) and the landing roll is 50 ft (15 m).^[1]

The manufacturer estimated the construction time from the supplied kit as 200 hours.^[1]

Operational history

By 1998 the company reported that 25 kits had been sold and five aircraft were completed and flying.^[1]

In March 2015 six examples were registered in the United States with the Federal Aviation Administration, although a total of 12 had been registered at one time.^[3]

Specifications (Twinstar)

Data from Purdy,^[1] Brassey^[4]

General characteristics

• Crew: one
• Capacity: one passenger
• Length: 12 ft 0 in (3.66 m)
• Height: 8 ft 0 in (2.44 m)
• Empty weight: 700 lb (318 kg)
• Gross weight: 1,200 lb (544 kg)
• Fuel capacity: 20 U.S. gallons (76 L; 17 imp gal)
• Powerplant: 1 × Lycoming O-320 four cylinder, air-cooled, four stroke aircraft engine, 150-160 hp (112--119 kW)
• Main rotor diameter: 28 ft 0 in (8.53 m)
• Main rotor area: 706 sq ft (65.6 m²)
• Propellers: 2-bladed fixed pitch

Performance

• Maximum speed: 90 mph (145 km/h, 78 kn)
• Cruise speed: 65 mph (105 km/h, 56 kn)
• Range: 90 mi (145 km, 78 nmi)
• Service ceiling: 10,000 ft (3,050 m)
• Rate of climb: 1,000 ft/min (5.1 m/s)
• Disk loading: 1.7 lb/sq ft (8.3 kg/m²)