Viking Dragonfly
American homebuilt aircraft
title: "Viking Dragonfly" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["aircraft-first-flown-in-1980", "homebuilt-aircraft", "tandem-wing-aircraft", "single-engined-tractor-aircraft"] description: "American homebuilt aircraft" topic_path: "arts/film" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viking_Dragonfly" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::summary American homebuilt aircraft ::
::data[format=table title="Infobox aircraft"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | Dragonfly |
| image | VH-DBL Viking Dragonfly Mk.2 (7529629670).jpg |
| caption | Dragonfly Mk II |
| type | Light aircraft |
| national_origin | United States of America |
| manufacturer | Viking Aircraft LLC |
| first_flight | June 16, 1980 |
| developed_from | Rutan Quickie |
| :: |
|name=Dragonfly |image=VH-DBL Viking Dragonfly Mk.2 (7529629670).jpg |alt= |caption=Dragonfly Mk II |type=Light aircraft |national_origin =United States of America |manufacturer=Viking Aircraft LLC |first_flight =June 16, 1980 |developed_from= Rutan Quickie |variants=
The Viking Dragonfly is an American amateur-built aircraft, designed by Bob Walters and produced by Viking Aircraft LLC of Elkhorn, Wisconsin. The aircraft is supplied as a kit or as plans for amateur construction.
Design and development
The Dragonfly is a two-seater aircraft that features a tandem wing layout with a forward wing mounted low and the other behind the cockpit in a shoulder position, a two-seats-in-side-by-side configuration enclosed cockpit under a bubble canopy, fixed landing gear and a single engine in tractor configuration. The cockpit is 43 in wide
The aircraft is constructed from composites, based on construction techniques pioneered by Burt Rutan at Rutan Aircraft Factory (RAF). The airframe design is visually similar to the RAF's Quickie 2, which was developed independently, but the Dragonfly has larger airfoils and a smaller engine, resulting in a slower but more docile handling aircraft. Its forward 20 ft span wing employs a GU25-5(11)8 mod airfoil, when the aft wing (span 22 ft) uses an Eppler 1212 airfoil. Both wings have a total area of 92.2 sqft. Standard engines used include the 60 hp Volkswagen air-cooled engine and the 85 hp Jabiru 2200 four-stroke powerplants. Construction time from the supplied kit is estimated as 700 hours, while from plans is estimated at over 1200 hours.
Operational history
The Dragonfly was given the Outstanding New Design Award at the EAA Convention in 1980. By 1998, 500 examples of all variants were reported as flying.
Variants
::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cd/Viking_Dragonfly_Mk_I_(N4862H,cn_325)(7-28-2023).jpg" caption="Dragonfly Mk I"] ::
::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d0/VH-DBL_Viking_Dragonfly_Mk.2_(7529624308).jpg" caption="Dragonfly Mk II"] ::
;Dragonfly Mk I :Original version with main landing gear mounted in fairings at the lower wing tips. Operations require paved runways and wide taxiways due to widely spaced main wheels. ;Dragonfly Mk II :Version with conventional landing gear. ;Dragonfly Mk III :Version with tricycle landing gear.
Specifications (Mark III Millenium)
|ref= |prime units?=imp Without an entry here, no specifications will show -- General characteristics
|genhide= |crew=1 |capacity=1 passenger |length m= |length ft=19 |length in=0 |span m= |span ft=22 |span in=0 |height m= |height ft=5 |height in=6 |wing area sqm= |wing area sqft=92.1 |empty weight kg= |empty weight lb=600 |gross weight kg= |gross weight lb=1250 |fuel capacity= Powerplant
|eng1 number=1 |eng1 name=Jabiru 2200 |eng1 type=air-cooled flat-four |eng1 kw= |eng1 hp= |eng1 shp= |eng1 kn= |eng1 lbf= |eng1 kn-ab= |eng1 lbf-ab= |prop blade number= |prop name= |prop dia m= |prop dia ft= |prop dia in=
Performance
|perfhide= |max speed kmh= |max speed mph= |max speed kts= |max speed mach= |cruise speed kmh= |cruise speed mph=130 |cruise speed kts= |stall speed mph=55 |never exceed speed mph=180 |range km= |range miles=500 |range nmi= |ceiling m= |ceiling ft= |climb rate ms= |climb rate ftmin=850 |g limits=+4.4, -2.0 |more performance= |avionics=
References
- Jackson, Paul. Jane's All The World's Aircraft 2003–2004. Coulsdon, UK: Jane's Information Group, 2003. .
References
- Bill Cox : "...Bob Walters, an ex-Navy fighter pilot with a penchant for designing his own airplanes. Walters came up with his two-seat adaptation of the Quickie..." in ''Homebuilt Aircraft'', March 1985, "New legs for a Dragonfly", page 18
- Purdy, Don: ''AeroCrafter - Homebuilt Aircraft Sourcebook'', page 284-285. BAI Communications, 15 July 1998. {{ISBN. 0-9636409-4-1
- Lednicer, David. (2010). "The Incomplete Guide to Airfoil Usage".
- [http://www.flightglobal.com/pdfarchive/view/1980/1980%20-%203360.html "General Flight"] ''Flight International'', 1 November 1980 p1681
- Jackson 2003, pp. 734–735.
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