Maiden flight for Burt Rutan's SkiGull seaplane

photo antenna films The SkiGull seaplane designed by legendary American aircraft designer Burt Rutan flew for first time on Tuesday fro...

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The SkiGull seaplane designed by legendary American aircraft designer Burt Rutan flew for first time on Tuesday from the Coeur d’Alene airport in northern Idaho.

The maiden flight flown by test pilot Glenn Smith lasted one and half hours and tested basic stability and control of SkiGull. The pilot said the aircraft was very responsive, predictable and fun to fly. Speed was limited to 80 knots and the aircraft remained below 8,000 feet altitude.

The 47th aircraft from his stable, the SkiGull is a high wing amphibian with trimaran hull designed to seat two person in tandem and comfortably fly non-stop up to 2100 nm (3890 km) with the ability to operate from unimproved surfaces.

The aircraft is designed to address traditional seaplane shortcomings like rough water limitations, shorter range, slow cruise speed etc.

The SkiGull has a high aspect ratio strut braced wings having a 14.3 m (47 ft) wingspan which can be folded for ground transportation and fit in a garage.

The retractable shock absorber equipped flexible ski system which can survive a 10g impact enable to operate from any surface including rough sea, snow, dirt patch. Small wheels on ski enable hard surface landings, and a tail wheel help to steer.

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It can fly from California to Hawaii without ferry tanks and cruise at a speed of 140 knots. The single Rotax 912iS piston engine that runs on auto fuel, eliminates the need for an airport.

Composites are used to resist corrosion and enable operation in saltwater. The aircraft features two 12 hp electric motors for docking. The motors can also provide additional power for take off if required and can power the plane about 8 miles in case the main engine fails.

Rutan designed and developed his last project from his garage in Coeur d'Alene. His designs popularized the canard configuration with his VariEze home built aircraft. Rutan's famous aircraft designs include the record breaking Voyager that flew non-stop round the world, the SpaceShipOne sub-orbital spaceplane and the Long-EZ.

*Second image shows the ski deployed in flight