Whittaker MW5 Sorcerer

MW5 Sorcerer
Whittaker MW5 Sorcerer
Role	Amateur-built aircraft
National origin	United Kingdom
Designer	Mike Whittaker
Introduction	mid-1980s
Status	Plans available (2012)
Unit cost	£70 (Plans only, 2011)
Variants	Whittaker MW6

The Whittaker MW5 Sorcerer is a British amateur-built aircraft that was designed by Mike Whittaker in the mid-1980s and supplied as plans for amateur construction.^[1]

Design and development

The aircraft features a strut-braced parasol wing, a single-seat open cockpit, fixed conventional landing gear and a single engine in tractor configuration, mounted on the keel tube, above the cockpit.^[1]

The aircraft is made from aluminium tubing, with its flying surfaces covered in doped aircraft fabric. Its 8.54 m (28.0 ft) span wing has an area of 11.2 m² (121 sq ft). The standard engine used is the 40 hp (30 kW) Rotax 447 two-stroke powerplant.^[1]

The design is approved by the Light Aircraft Association in the UK.^[1][2]

Variants

Whittaker MW-7

MW5A

Initial version^[1]

MW5D

Model with folding wings and the same wing area as the "A" model^[1]

MW5K

Seaplane version with a single monohull Full Lotus inflatable float and wing tip pontoons^[1]

MW7

Aerobatic version with shorter wingspan^[1]

Specifications (MW5A Sorcerer)

Data from Bayerl^[1]

General characteristics

• Crew: one
• Wingspan: 8.54 m (28 ft 0 in)
• Wing area: 11.2 m² (121 sq ft)
• Empty weight: 145 kg (320 lb)
• Gross weight: 285 kg (628 lb)
• Powerplant: 1 × Rotax 447 twin cylinder, air-cooled, two stroke aircraft engine, 30 kW (40 hp)
• Propellers: 2-bladed wooden

Performance

• Maximum speed: 148 km/h (92 mph; 80 kn)
• Cruising speed: 102 km/h (63 mph; 55 kn)
• Stall speed: 56 km/h (35 mph; 30 kn)
• Rate of climb: 3 m/s (590 ft/min)
• Wing loading: 25.4 kg/m² (5.2 lb/sq ft)

References

1. Bayerl, Robby; Martin Berkemeier; et al: World Directory of Leisure Aviation 2011-12, page 111. WDLA UK, Lancaster UK, 2011. ISSN 1368-485X
2. Light Aircraft Association (25 September 2012). "Approved Homebuilt Types" (PDF). Retrieved 10 October 2012.

External links

• Photo of Whittaker MW5D Sorcerer