First of Type - Ellipse Spirit ZK-NIX

A new type of sport aircraft for New Zealand, an Ellipse Spirit has recently been assembled in Tauranga by Solo Wings:

ZK-NIX (c/n 62/23) was registered to Ellipse Industries Ltd of Tuakau on 1/5/24, its personalised registration reflecting its owners name.  It is a retractable undercarriage version and is fitted with a Rotax 914 engine.

Ellipse aircraft are manufactured by Ellipse Aero s.r.o. of the Czech Republic and the original fixed gear model was introduced at Aero Friedrichshafen 2011.  Its point of difference to other similar 2 seat side by side low wing microlights is its elliptical wing which features slats in the outer wings.  It is of all composite construction.  The Ellipse Spirit is 6.55 metres long (26 feet 3 inches).  Its wingspan is 8.00 metres (26 feet 3 inches) and its wing area is 102 square feet.  Its empty weight with a BRS parachute is around 306 Kg (674 pounds) and its NZ its MAUW is 598 Kg (1,318 Pounds).  A range of engines can be fitted from the Rotax 912, 914, 915 to the 916 or the UL Power 260iS.  With a 100 HP Rotax 912 ULS engine the performance is quoted as cruise speed 275km/hr (149 knots) while the stall speed is quoted as 62 km/hr (33 knots).  A nice aircraft.

Thanks very much to Warwick Hamilton for the photo.