Girodreamer,
thank you for your informative post. It's always great getting more info.
Yes, we all await the final report of the Thomas Kiggen crash. The grandfather of the Auto-Gyro gyros.
The preliminary report was a joke, blaming bad possibly maintenance and showing pictures from somewhere else....
So far I am so happy I changed my Type1 Auto-Gyro rotor to a Polish Gyro-Tech rotor of same size.
I did not like the way Type1 and 2 rotor hubs clamp down on the extruded blade.
The Gyro-Tech blade interfaces with the hub plates in a way, that doesn't make the same stress concentration.
It has the Averso type single hub bar and blades are of carbon fiber with steel inside (I could see it on my compass...).
It's performing very well - only thing missing is final balancing in my own teeter head. Done with a bearing "module" adjusted sideways.
But because of insurance costs my gyro is on vacation until April 1st.
Cheers
Erik
BTW, I translated a late 2014 "Aerokurier" interview with the Auto-Gyro boss:
(If you read German, here is the original: https://www.aerokurier.de/ultraleicht/a ... interview/)
Otmar Birkner is the boss and founder of the world's largest gyroplane manufacturer AutoGyro. At first it was far from certain that this would happen.
That's how it all started
Hello, Otmar, nice to see you. Otherwise you will rarely be met. Yes, it is not my great pleasure to be the center of attention. The store has grown quickly, so there is no way to get to know each customer personally.
This is not meant to be angry with anyone - that is the sheer necessity. We are on the road with 1,700 gyroscopes around the world.
Today you are the international number one. How did it all start?
In 2003 Thomas Kiggen came around the corner with such a strange thing that was hanging on a rotor and for some reason did not want to fall off even at slow flight. I didn't know gyrocopter until then and I wasn't even aware of what all this could mean.
Thomas and I have started to improve and certify his gyroplane. At that time I was self-employed building trikes and a flight school. In 2004 we built nine or ten gyroplanes. In 2005 it was already 23. The next hall was due.
Thomas then took care of the school, I took care of the production.
It was based on a Spanish pattern, right?
Right, it started with an ELA. For approval we had to change many points that the manufacturer did not agree with. So we started our own production. The Spaniards slammed the door on themselves.
That sounds adventurous.
We took a high economic risk. Our starting capital was the willingness to put a lot of work into the project. There were hardly any bank loans, everything had to be financed from the current state of affairs.
At some point I made the decision to only manufacture gyroplanes. Even today, all of this is still a risk every day. Last year, for example, we invested 4.7 million euros in new buildings.
Did you design Cavalon and Calidus?
Yes, the ideas for new patterns come from me. A good team supports me when it comes to the details in CAD planning. I studied mechatronics myself, and I also enjoy good design. The Cavalon was honored with the Red Dot Award, among other things.
What does the future hold at AutoGyro?
Together with Bosch Aviation GmbH we are working on an electrically powered Cavalon. We want to start with it at the end of 2014. At the beginning it will be a feasibility study to show that you can fly electric traffic laps with a gyroplane.
If we think two battery generations ahead, then smaller cross-country flights should certainly also be considered. An 82 kW motor from the automotive sector is available to us as a drive.
When will the AutoGyro UL helicopter arrive?
I think the current structures of the UL scene are unsuitable for operating helicopters. Of course we could technically realize such a development, but at the moment I don't want to.
Where do you see your gyroplane market?
The business of the future will certainly lie in all types of surveillance - whether these are pipeline flights or police operations. I also see a market for four-seater gyrocopters in large-scale countries with poor infrastructure.
A four seat UL?
No, it won't be a UL anymore. Our goal is an EASA certification. All processes in the company are already geared towards this. This step would open the door to new markets for us. Speaking of EASA: Did you have your fingers in the game when the MTOW for gyroplanes was increased to 560 kilograms?
Definitely no! We fell off our chairs ourselves when we heard this.
Do you still have time for a private life?
The boundaries between work and private life are blurring. When I visit our partners around the world, I enjoy being out and about in foreign countries in a gyroplane. Whether Namibia, Costa Rica or a visit to my buddy Willy Ewig in Australia - many business trips are also a bit of vacation.
At home I often ride my mountain bike. I also dive and like to go sailing. I've been married for almost 20 years and have two daughters aged 12 and 14.
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(he should've shut up)