San-Franscisco based start-up, Cobalt Aircraft has unveiled an new propeller-driven private aircraft named the Co50 Valkyrie. The five...
San-Franscisco based start-up, Cobalt Aircraft has unveiled an new propeller-driven private aircraft named the Co50 Valkyrie.
The five seater built using composites, sports a stunningly sleek design, inspired from classic fighter jets.
Valkyrie features a 20 degree swept main wing and canard mounted below the nose with a retractable tri-cycle landing gear, along with twin canted vertical tails.
The fore wing (canard) improve safety by preventing the plane from stalling in the air, as the canard stalls, before the main wing does.
Valkyrie has the largest one-piece canopy in the world and provides an unrivaled 320-degree visibility, which opens by tilting forward.
With a range of 1050 nautical miles (nmi) with NBAA IFR reserves, Valkyrie can cruise at 20,000 ft and is the fastest single engine piston plane in its category with a top speed of 260 knots (around 300 mph).
Safety features include an on board parachute that can safely bring the aircraft to ground and an automatic air brakes that deploys if the aircraft reaches the never exceed Vne speed.
The oxygenized, non-pressurized cabin can comfortably seats five people, including the pilot, with ample storage for golf clubs, skis and suitcases.
A single turbocharged Continental 350 hp piston engine located in the aft in pusher configuration powers the Valkyrie, which reduce noise and improve flying comfort.
Full FAA certification is expected in summer 2017, which will enable production and sales. Currently it is registered as a experimental aircraft, which enable to carry out flight test and customer demonstrations.
The fully certified Co50 Valkyrie costs $699,000 and customers can pre-order it now with a $15,000 deposit.
The Cobalt also revealed an experimental version of the Valkyrie, called the Valkyrie-X, priced at $595,000 which has an estimated production period of six months.
Cobalt was founded by CEO, David Loury, an French aerospace engineer, entrepreneur and designer, 10 years ago in France. The company was moved to San Francisco 1.5 years ago.
