Aerocar IMP - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Aerocar
Aerocar International
Aerocar International was a roadable aircraft manufacturer, founded by Moulton Taylor in Longview, Washington. Work continued until the late 1960s when changing legislation made Taylor's designs impractical.-Aircraft:...

IMP (for Independently Made Plane) was an unconventional light aircraft designed by Moulton Taylor

Moulton Taylor

Moulton B. "Molt" Taylor was an aeronautical engineer famed for his work on developing a practical flying car.- Life :Taylor was born in Portland, Oregon and studied engineering at the University of Washington...

and marketed for homebuilding

Homebuilt aircraft

Also known as amateur-built aircraft or kit planes, homebuilt aircraft are constructed by persons for whom this is not a professional activity. These aircraft may be constructed from "scratch," from plans, or from assembly kits.-Overview:...

. The IMP and its various derivatives were developed by Taylor after he had already established himself in the homebuilt market with the Coot

Aerocar Coot

-See also:-References:* John W. R. Taylor. Jane's All The World's Aircraft 1982–83. London:Jane's Yearbooks, 1982. ISBN 0-7106-0748-2.- External links :*...

amphibian, and at the time of the Energy Crisis in the United States, were designed to be economical to build and operate.

The IMP was unconventional in configuration in having a pusher propeller powered by a long driveshaft from an engine mounted midway within the fuselage of the aircraft. This provided an aerodynamic advantage over more traditional pusher arrangements by allowing greater streamlining of the fuselage - giving the IMP the appearance of an elongated teardrop. The aircraft's most visually striking feature, however, is its inverted V-tail

V-tail

In aircraft, a V-tail is an unconventional arrangement of the tail control surfaces that replaces the traditional fin and horizontal surfaces with two surfaces set in a V-shaped configuration when viewed from the front or rear of the aircraft...

.

Originally designed as a four-seat aircraft, the original IMP design proved to be too complex and expensive for the market that Taylor was aiming for, and although it was awarded a type certification by the FAA

Federal Aviation Administration

The Federal Aviation Administration is the national aviation authority of the United States. An agency of the United States Department of Transportation, it has authority to regulate and oversee all aspects of civil aviation in the U.S...

, development was abandoned in favour of scaled-down, single-seat version dubbed the Mini-IMP

Aerocar Mini-IMP

|-Related content:Related development:IMP -Micro-IMP -Holcomb Perigee...

General characteristics

Crew: one pilot
Capacity: 3 passengers
Length: 22 ft 0 in (6.70 m)
Wingspan: 29 ft 0 in (8.84 m)
Height: ft in ( m)
Wing area: ft² ( m²)
Empty: lb ( kg)
Loaded: lb ( kg)
Maximum takeoff: lb ( kg)
Powerplant: 1x Franklin 4R, 200 hp (149 kW)

Performance

Maximum speed: 150 mph (240 km/h)
Range: miles ( km)
Service ceiling: ft ( m)
Rate of climb: ft/min ( m/min)
Wing loading: lb/ft² ( kg/m²)
Power/Mass: hp/lb ( kW/kg)