Grumman Yankee
| AA-1 series | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| American Aviation AA-1 Yankee Clipper | |
| Role | Sport, personal and trainer aircraft |
| Manufacturer | American Aviation |
| Designer | Jim Bede |
| First flight | July 11th, 1963 as BD-1 prototype |
| Introduction | 1968 |
| Produced | 1968–1978 |
| Number built | 1,820 |
| Unit cost |
US$6,495 in 1969
|
| Developed from | Bede BD-1 |
| Variants | AA-5 series |
The Grumman American AA-1 series is a family of light, two-seat aircraft. The family includes the original American Aviation AA-1 Yankee Clipper and AA-1A Trainer, the Grumman American AA-1B Trainer and TR-2 and the Gulfstream American AA-1C Lynx and T-Cat.
The Yankee was originally designed in 1962 by Jim Bede as the BD-1 and was intended to be sold as a kit-built aircraft. Bede decided to certify the design under the then-new FAR Part 23 rules and offer it as a completed aircraft. No BD-1 kits were ever sold.
The prototype first flew on July 11, 1963 and featured folding wings for trailering and ease of storage. Bede formed a company, Bede Aviation Corporation, based in Cleveland Ohio, to produce the aircraft, but the BD-1 never entered production as a certified aircraft. At that time the FAA was hesitant to certify a light aircraft with folding wings. The certification process was complex and expensive and disagreements arose between Bede and the other shareholders. As a result Bede was ousted by his business partners and the company renamed American Aviation.
American's engineers reworked the wing to a non-folding design, easing FAR Part 23 certification. Other changes included adding extended wing tips to improve rate-of-climb, an anti-servo tab on the elevator along with a centering spring system to increase longitudinal stability and stall strips to improve handling during a stall. The company designated the redesigned aircraft the AA-1 Yankee Clipper.
The AA-1 was certified under FAR Part 23 on August 29, 1967 with the first production AA-1 flying on May 30, 1968. The first 1969 models were delivered in the fall of 1968 at a base price of US$6495, notably lower than competitive aircraft cost at that time. American Aviation built 459 examples of the AA-1 Yankee Clipper between 1969 and 1971 at their factory in Cleveland, Ohio.
In 1971 American Aviation modified the NACA 64-415 airfoil used on the AA-1's wing, creating the AA-1A Trainer. The recontoured leading edge produced softer stall characteristics and permitted lower approach speeds. While this did tame the AA-1's sharp stall, it also reduced the cruise speed compared to the original AA-1 by 10 mph. First flight was on March 25, 1970 and 470 AA-1As were built in 1971-72.
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Wikipedia