Lehtovaara PIK-16 Vasama

Design and development

The PIK-16 is constructed from wood, with a fibreglass nose. The 15.0 m span wing employs a Wortmann FX-05-168 (14% modification) airfoil at the wing root, transitioning to a NACA 63 (2)-165 at the wing tip. The wing features dive brakes. The prototype Vasama had V tail, but it was changed to cruciform tail on production aircraft.

A total of 56 PIK-16s were built. The aircraft was not type certified but it did become the second most exported Finnish glider, surpassed only by the later PIK-20 series.

Operational history

The prototype PIK-16 set a Finnish national record for a 300 km triangle course of 86.6 km/h before it had even finished flight testing.

The design won the OSTIV prize at the World Gliding Championships held at Junín, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina in 1963, finishing third in the standard class.

Variants

;PIK-16a :Prototype with a V-tail. ;PIK-16b :Revised design with a cruciform tail, four built by the Finnish Aeronautical Association at the Jämi Flying School. ;PIK-16c :Third version

Aircraft on display

• Finnish Aviation Museum

Specifications (Pik-16 Vasama)

|prime units?=met |max takeoff weight kg= |max takeoff weight lb= |max takeoff weight note=

|never exceed speed kmh=250 |never exceed speed mph= |never exceed speed kts= |never exceed speed note=

• Rough air speed max: 180 km/h
• Aerotow speed: 150 km/h
• Winch launch speed: 140 km/h
• Terminal velocity: with full airbrakes 235 km/h |minimum control speed kmh= |minimum control speed mph= |minimum control speed kts= |minimum control speed note= |wing loading kg/m2=24 |wing loading lb/sqft=

References

Citations

Bibliography

References

1. Activate Media. (2006). "PIK-16 Vasama Lehtovaara".
2. Said, Bob. (November 1983). "1983 Sailplane Directory". Soaring Society of America.
3. Lednicer, David. (2010). "The Incomplete Guide to Airfoil Usage".
4. [[Finnish Aviation Museum]]. (2009). "PIK 16c Vasama".
5. (17 August 1961). "Sport and Business".
6. (23 August 1962). "Sport and Business".
7. Shenstone, B.S.. (1963). "The World's Sailplanes:Die Segelflugzeuge der Welt:Les Planeurs du Monde Volume II". Organisation Scientifique et Technique Internationale du Vol a Voile (OSTIV) and Schweizer Aero-Revue.