JM-2 Special | |
---|---|
Role | Homebuilt Formula One Air Racing aircraft |
National origin | United States |
Manufacturer | Bruce Bohannon |
Designer | Jim W Miller and Bruce Bohannon |
First flight | Early 1989 |
Retired | 1996 |
Status | Sole example in the AirVenture Museum |
Number built | One |
Developed from | Miller JM-2 |
The Miller-Bohannon JM-2 Special, named Pushy Galore, is a one-of-a-kind American homebuilt Formula One racing and record-setting aircraft. It was based upon Jim W Miller's Miller JM-2 design, highly modified by Bruce Bohannon.
Bohannon began construction of Pushy Galore in 1988 and first flew it in the early part of 1989, first entering it in a race in June 1989.
The aircraft features a cantilever mid-wing, a single-seat enclosed cockpit under a bubble canopy, fixed main tricycle landing gear with a retractable nose wheel, a t-tail, nose mounted canard and a single engine in pusher configuration.
The aircraft is made from welded steel tubing covered in molded carbon fiber. As required by the Formula One rules, its engine is a 100 hp (75 kW) Continental O-200A.
Only one example was ever built.
Bohannan entered the aircraft in the Reno Air Races in 1994, qualifying in third place in the Formula One class, with a speed of 236.153 mph (380.051 km/h).
In 1995 Bohannan flew the aircraft to second place in the Formula One Gold championship race at Reno, Nevada.
Bohannan also used the aircraft to set world time-to-climb records in the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) C-1.A class. At AirVenture 1994 Bohannan set a new world time-to-climb record, climbing to 6,000 m (19,685 ft) in 12 minutes and 50 seconds. In January 1996, Bohannan climbed the aircraft to 9,000 m (29,528 ft) in 41 minutes and 35 seconds, setting class world time-to-climb, absolute altitude and altitude in horizontal flight records. In July 1996 at AirVenture in Oshkosh, Bohannan set a third FAI class time-to-climb record of 3,000 m (9,843 ft) in three minutes and eight seconds.