Scaled Composites Pond Racer
| Pond Racer | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Role | Racing aircraft |
| Manufacturer | Scaled Composites |
| Designer | Burt Rutan |
| First flight | March 22, 1991 |
| Introduction | 1991 |
| Retired | 1993 (Destroyed) |
| Number built | 1 |
| Type | Model 158 |
| Registration | N221BP |
| Fate | Destroyed |
The Scaled Composites Pond Racer (Company designation Model 158) was a twin-engine twin-boom aircraft developed for Bob Pond by Burt Rutan and his company Scaled Composites.
Bob Pond commissioned the design with the idea of developing a modern aircraft that could compete with the vintage warbirds in the Unlimited Class at the Reno air races. Bob Pond was concerned that each year at the Reno Air Races, valuable and historic aircraft were being crashed and destroyed, not to mention many engines being damaged or wrecked beyond repair. The Pond Racer was hoped to be an alternative to vintage aircraft like the P-51 Mustang and the Hawker Sea Fury that would be as fast and spectacular in the air as the warbirds.
The airframe was constructed of composite materials, carbon fiber and Kevlar. This resulted in a very light, strong aircraft. To power the plane two Electramotive 3 liter V-6 engines were chosen. These were based on the Nissan VG30 automobile engine. The engines were originally developed for auto racing and were turbocharged to produce 1,000 hp (750 kW). However, those fitted to the Pond Racer only ever achieved a peak of around 600 hp (450 kW). The engines drove 4-bladed propellers via propeller speed reduction units.
The aircraft made its debut at the 1991 Reno air races having been flown from the Scaled Composites factory under escort. Gasoline was used as the fuel for the flight to Reno as this gave a greater range. The onboard engine control computers were replaced with equipment for metering methanol in the race configuration. Methanol was the preferred fuel because no intercoolers were needed, and so the associated drag was eliminated. After the day's running had concluded the engines were again configured to burn gasoline to preclude the corrosive effects of methanol. The aircraft was entered in the Silver class and qualified at 400 mph (640 km/h), flown by experienced test pilot Rick Brickert. The aircraft developed mechanical problems before the race was officially started and dropped out as a DNS.
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