anyone own or have experience with one of these beauties ?? i fell in love with them after seeing this gem "banking" in the smithsonian... Image Unavailable, Please Login
I flew one briefly in 1947-8 and did not like it at all. The picture shows an 85 HP original that is identical to the one that I flew with a sales rep on a hot day in Florida. It was so anemic that I couldn't wait to get on the ground again.I felt like it was going to stall any minute...lose sloppy controls and obviously not enough HP for two people on a hot day. Twenty years later I flew with a guy who had put a 150 Lyc. in his and THAT was a nice airplane. Also much better with a 145 Cont.
Another take on the Swift -- but one with a bigger motor than 85hp! http://www.airbum.com/pireps/PirepSwift.html
A buddy of mine has a Swift, but as others have said, the original did not have enough engine. My friend is quite happy with the 210HP Continental O-360 in his.
AMEN ! More than twice the horsepressure ! That's bound to make it a flyable piece of equipment. The 85HP version had no performance with two people in it and barely enough with one. Rudder and elevator had minimal effect at low speed. Still one of the prettiest airplanes , tho.
Yeah. the Swift is a nice looking plane. Aerobatic too. I'll never forget the first time I saw one. I was either still a student pilot or had just gotten my license and was flying from Palo Alto, CA (KPAO) towards the Pacific and Half Moon Bay airport. I saw some traffic flying perpendicular to me, then it turned and began flying the same direction as me about a hundred yards in front of me. I was looking at, noting the low wing, the tailwheel and noting that the mains retracted, when suddenly it pitches up and does a roll. Cool! Then it left my pokey C152 behind.
I remember when Roy LoPresti redesigned the Globe Swift for piper and then later took the design and started his own company to produce the LoPresti Fury. I believe the Piper prototype was painted red (rosso corssa?) and had "Ciao Bella" painted under the wings (I couldn't find a photo). The later LoPresti Fury prototype was yellow (FLY?) and had "Yippee" painted underneath. Unfortunately Roy died in 2002. He loved speed and beautiful design. On the loprestifury website they compare the Fury to a Ferrari. Dave Image Unavailable, Please Login