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By Alton K. Marsh

Despite dire warnings about 2010 for most of the industry, Cirrus Design is having a better year than expected. “Other companies would like to be in our shoes,” President and CEO Brent Wouters said.

“A number of key business measurements suggest stronger performance in 2010 than previously anticipated,” Wouters recently told employees, customers, and suppliers. “The punch line is that with all the indicators I see, tangible and intangible, a difficult 2010 may turn out quite a bit better,” he said.

In recent comments to employees, customers, and suppliers, Wouters said the company was seeing signs of a strengthening market for aircraft sales.

First quarter sales are on a pace with the results of the first quarter of 2008. Total deliveries in 2008 were 550 new airplanes. While Wouters does not expect that total for this year, he expects results to surpass earlier predictions for 2010.

“When you couple that level of sales performance with a greatly improved business that—because of our successful restructuring—has cut our breakeven point to less than half its 2008 level, 2010 is on track to be much better than expected,” Wouters told employees.

He noted Purdue University recently ordered 16 aircraft. “We see many more new fleet opportunities on the horizon,” he said. “While much work remains to be done, by pulling together, the Cirrus community is overcoming the economic headwinds and helping us quickly and quietly grow a very strong company.”   for more  flyingpartnership.com

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Symphony SA-160 on the ramp at the factory in Trois-Rivières

The Symphony SA-160 side view

The Symphony SA-160 standard instrument panel

Symphony SA-160 showing 40 degree deflection on its Fowler flaps and its aileron end fences

The Symphony SA-160 has two unique vortex generators on its wing to ensure aileron effectiveness through the stall

The OMF-100-135 Symphony Thielert Centurion 1.7 diesel equipped prototype

The Symphony SA-160 is a CAR 523 certified, two-seat, single-engine, high-wing airplane that was manufactured by Symphony Aircraft Industries in Trois-Rivières, Quebec, Canada.^[1]

The SA-160 is a development of the Stoddard-Hamilton Glastar amateur-built kit aircraft and is externally similar to that design.^[2]

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[edit] Development

The SA-160 was developed from the Glastar by incorporating many significant changes to the basic design with the aim of simplifying construction and complying with certification requirements. The redesign work was completed by the engineering staff of Ostmecklenburgische Flugzeugbau GmbH (OMF Aircraft), (East Mecklenburg Aircraft Works Limited) of Neubrandenburg Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania between 1998 and 2000. The aircraft produced by OMF were sold under the designation OMF-100-160 Symphony. Later aircraft produced by Symphony Aircraft are designated Symphony SA-160.^[2]

The SA-160 has an aluminum wing design, utilizing a NASA GAW-2 Whitcomb airfoil. To simplify construction the wing has no washout and instead has two composite vortex generators of a unique design, outboard on each wing, to ensure that the inboard portion of the wing stalls first, thus retaining aileron control through the stall.^[2]

The wing is equipped with slotted Fowler flaps, which occupy 2/3 of the span. These deploy to 40 degrees and lower the stall speed by 9 knots to 51 knots (60 mph). The flaps are always set to 20 degrees for take-off. The ailerons are operated by control sticks and feature end-fences inboard and outboard for better slow speed and stall handling.^[2]

The fuselage is a 4130 welded steel tube cage covered in a non-structural fibreglass skin. The tail group is a mix of fibreglass fairings and aluminum surfaces.^[2]

The SA-160 is powered by a Lycoming O-320-D2A powerplant of 160 hp, driving a two-bladed wood fixed pitch MT propeller.^[2]

Symphony Aircraft continued the development started by OMF on a Thielert Centurion 1.7 diesel powered version, which OMF had designated as the OMF-100-135. The performance with the 135 hp engine was disappointing and the project was shelved in 2005.^[2]

Standard VFR avionics include a Garmin GNC 250XL GPS/COMM and GTX 320A Transponder The IFR avionics package consists of a Garmin 430 GPS/COMM, a 420 GPS/COMM and a Garmin GTX 327 transponder. The engine instruments are a Vision Microsystems VM 1000.^[2]

The landing gear is of a tricycle configuration with all three wheels mounted on steel sprung gear legs. The nosewheel is free castering and the aircraft is steered with differential braking. The brakes are mounted conventionally on the rudder pedal toes.^[2]

[edit] Options

The SA-160 offers an Avidyne glass cockpit Entegra EXP5000 Primary Flight Display, Entegra EX5000 Multi-Function Display and EMax Engine Indication System to replace the standard round instruments fitted.^[2]

A Ballistic Recovery Systems whole aircraft parachute system is also available. Other options include a TAS 600 Traffic Advisory System and a Sensenich two bladed fixed pitch climb propeller which replaces the MT two bladed wood/composite propeller.^[2]

On April 3rd 2006 Symphony Aircraft announced that a tuned exhaust system made by Power Flow Systems would be offered as an option on the SA-160. This USD$1600 option is forecast to give a 10% improvement in rate of climb to about 781 ft/min, an increased optimal cruise speed of about 5 knots to about 133 knots, or 0.5 to 1.5 US gallon per hour decrease in fuel burn, down to about 7.5 US gallons per hour. [1]

[edit] Pricing

In 2006 Symphony offered the basic VFR equipped SA-160 for USD$154,900, the IFR version for USD$169,900 and the glass cockpit equipped version for USD$214,900.

[edit] Future Developments

Prior to Symphony’s bankruptcy, plans for the design included a 180 hp version to be called the SA-180 and a floatplane or amphibious floatplane version.^[2]

[edit] Production

The SA-160 entered production as the OMF-100-160 Symphony in 2001 and 40 aircraft were completed before OMF went out of business in December 2003.^[1]

Production resumed at Symphony Aircraft Industries with the first SA-160 aircraft delivered on May 13th, 2005. By June 2006 production had ceased as Symphony Aircraft Industries sought additional capital to resume production ^[3]. On January 22, 2007, the company declared bankruptcy and ceased operations.

On February 3, 2008 it was publicly announced that Lou Simons, the former lead investor in Symphony Aircraft, was planning to restart production of the SA-160 under the company name North American Factory for Technologically Advanced Aircraft (NAFTAA).^[4]

The new company announced in July 2008 that they intend to restart production by the end of 2009 at the previous plant in Trois-Rivières, Québec. They intend to produce 15 aircraft in 2009 and will ramp up production to 50 to 80 per year by 2012. The aircraft will be given a new name and will be available in a VFR version intended for flight school use, a basic IFR version and a glass cockpit equipped version powered by a 200-hp Lycoming IO-390 powerplant giving it a forecast cruise speed of 148 knots.^[5]

[edit] Aircraft Type Club

The SA-160 does not currently have an aircraft type club.^[2]

[edit] Specifications (SA-160)

Specifications are given for 160 hp, O-320-D2A configuration with a fixed pitch MT propeller

General characteristics

• Crew: one pilot
• Capacity: one passenger
• Length: 22.84 ft (7.03 m)
• Wingspan: 35.00ft (10.76 m)
• Height: 9.25 ft (2.82 m)
• Wing area: 128.42 ft² (11.9 m²)
• Empty weight: 1450 lb (657 kg)
• Loaded weight: 2150 lb (973 kg)
• Max takeoff weight: 2150lb (973kg)
• Powerplant: 1× Lycoming O-320-D2A with a two-bladed wood fixed pitch MT propeller, 160hp (119 kW)

Performance

• Never exceed speed: 162 knots (301 km/h)
• Maximum speed: 128 knots at 8000 feet (238 km/h)
• Range: 354 nm with no wind and a 30 minute reserve (660 km)
• Service ceiling: 16,400 feet (5046 m)
• Rate of climb: 710 ft/min (3.62 m/s)
• Wing loading: 16.74 lb/ft² (84 kg/m²)

[edit] Related content

[edit] Related development

• Glastar

[edit] Similar aircraft

• Alpha 2000 (Robin R2000)
• Cessna 150
• Cessna 152
• Cessna 172
• Diamond DA20
• Liberty XL2

[edit] Designation series

SA-160 – SA-180

[edit] References

• SA-160 Abbreviated specifications
• Symphony 160: Cash Needed, Customers Waiting – AvWeb Jun 29 2006
• The Product Will Prevail, Company Says – AvWeb Jun 29 2006
• Symphony Aircraft press release about Power Flow Systems exhaust system option (PDF file)
• Symphony options and pricing list 2007 (PDF file)
• SA-160 complete specifications (PDF file)

[edit] External links

• Former location of the Symphony Aircraft Industries website
• Power Flow Exhaust Systems

SOUTH ST. PAUL, Minn., April 12 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Ballistic Recovery Systems, Inc. (BULLETIN BOARD: BRSI) ( http://www.brsparachutes.com/ ), a manufacturer of parachute recovery systems for general aviation and recreational aircraft, today announced that it has signed a strategic alliance agreement with Symphony Aircraft Industries (SAI). The Joint agreement allows Symphony to fast track the first factory BRS installations, and make the Three Rivers Quebec based airplane company the first certificated high-wing design to offer the parachute factory installed. This combined offering is the basis for an ongoing business relationship that will lead to the BRS …