STEVE  WHITE'S  CHALLENGER  II  "SPECIAL"

 
 
 

     Some day soon!

For more information on the Challenger line of aircraft, see the Quad Cities website, contact the Moline, Illinois sales office at (309)764-3515 (or email at DaveatQCU@aol.com). Another informative site is that of the Canadian distributor. Fellow Chapter 1016 member Mark Regan, another Hawk builder, also recommends a particularly complete builder's site.  Or contact me by phone at: (828) 299-9588 or via e-mail at: scwhite@aol.com

You'll also enjoy reading an EAA Experimenter Magazine article on the Challenger.
the Challenger is available in several versions ranging from the Ultralight Single Seater and Challenger II 2 Seater, through the two "clipped wing" Challenger and Challenger II "Specials" - the Challenger II Special being my choice due to its higher level of performance and passenger-carying capability.  Wing span is shortened to 26' from the original 31.5', and with the proven Rotax 503 2-cycle engine, useful load almost doubles from 260# to 500#.  Cruise speed is given as 85 mph which is pretty respectable given its payload and a stall speed of 32 mph solo (37 mph dual). All this amounts to a lot of airplane for a completed cost of under $18,000.

I chose the Challenger as a first time project because it's been around since 1983 and the basic airframe has had only minor mods. There are over 2,500 flying, and the factory ships between 15 and 18 kits a month. We hope to have her in the sky by the end of 2002 (depending on finances and the patience of our spouses).


Steve's neat and well-lit shop are a great asset.  Here's the relaxed and confident builder alongside his conveniently elevated work surface. This time-honored tubular design offers strength, simplicity  of design, and light weight to say nothing of great visibility.

Most of my flying was done along the front range in Colorado. I'm a low time VFR pilot with about 200 hours in Cessna 152, 172, 177, and a Beech Musketeer. I've been getting re-certified with Darwin Jones (CFII and our Chapter Flight Advisor) at Translyvania County Airport and enjoying every minute of it, even the though I'm sure Darwin is gritting his teeth sometimes.

RobertJohn Gillespie has joined me as a partner in building S/N 2161. He and I were doodling around in his J3 from Rutherfordton last December and dropped into Clyde Valley to visit Joe Carswell, who is a dealer in Challengers. We both got an introductory ride and I was hooked. Being a cautious person, I waited about a long time and ordered a Clipped Wing Special the next week. The lead time was 12-15 weeks and the kit actually arrived on March 18, 2002. It has been an interesting experience to assemble the kit and cover the airframe components since the instruction book has not been updated in a long time and was never very clear to begin with. Of course, the key has been to take your time and ask a lot of (dumb) questions.
Visitors admire Steve's workmanship and the Challenger's simplicity of design. With controls in place, covering can't be far behind. Steve expects to have his airplane flying by spring of 2004.
Revised
11/20/03