- Source: Layzell Merlin
The Layzell Merlin is a British autogyro that was designed by Scottish designer Jim Montgomery and produced by Layzell Gyroplanes of Quedgeley, Gloucester. The aircraft was supplied as a kit for amateur construction.
The type remained in production by Layzell through 2011, although by July 2012 the company website had been removed from the internet.
Design and development
The Merlin features a single main rotor, a single-seat open cockpit with a fairing and a windshield, tricycle landing gear with wheel pants and a twin cylinder, air-cooled, two-stroke, single-ignition 64 hp (48 kW) Rotax 582 engine in pusher configuration.
The aircraft fuselage is made from bolted-together square aluminum tubing. Its 7.01 m (23.0 ft) diameter Rotor Flight Dynamics rotor has a chord of 18 cm (7.1 in). The aircraft has an empty weight of 145 kg (320 lb) and a gross weight of 295 kg (650 lb), giving a useful load of 150 kg (331 lb).
After taking over Montgomery's design, company owner Gary Layzell expressed an interest in further developing the Merlin, but initially produced it unchanged.
Operational history
By January 2013, 28 examples had been registered in the United Kingdom with the CAA as Montgomerie-Bensen B8MR.
Specifications (Merlin GTS)
Data from BayerlGeneral characteristics
Crew: one
Empty weight: 145 kg (320 lb)
Gross weight: 295 kg (650 lb)
Fuel capacity: 50 litres (11 imp gal; 13 US gal)
Powerplant: 1 × Rotax 582 twin cylinder, liquid-cooled, two stroke aircraft engine, 48 kW (64 hp)
Main rotor diameter: 7.01 m (23 ft 0 in)
Propellers: 3-bladed composite
Performance
Cruise speed: 120 km/h (75 mph, 65 kn)
Rate of climb: 4.5 m/s (890 ft/min)
References
External links
Layzell Gyroplanes website archives on Archive.org
Photo of a Layzell Merlin GTS
