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Next week at EAA AirVenture in Oshkosh, Sean Tucker and Team Oracle will wow the crowds and show off their brand-new Challenger III. Team Oracle's Brian Norris shared some of the biplane's unique aerodynamic features with AVweb's Mary Grady, who brought home a few photos.
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 photo by Victoria Arocho |
Brian Norris, operations co‑ordinator for Team Oracle, has been working with Sean D. Tucker for 20 years. |
 The big Hartzell propeller creates a propwash that affects the inner ailerons, so they remain effective even when the airflow over the wing is next to nothing. |
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| The unusual two-part ailerons allow the inner part of the aileron to fly at a different angle of attack from the outer part. | |
 The small surfaces known as "spades," attached beneath the lower wings, act as an aerodynamic counter-force, keeping control inputs light. |
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| The newly designed "3-D" carbon-fiber tail was inspired by remote-control aircraft and allows Tucker to make large deflections for low-speed maneuvers. | |
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| photo by Victoria Arocho | |
| The Challenger III biplane is all-new, but Team Oracle is hanging on to one piece of equipment from their previous rig — pilot Sean Tucker. | |