After a two-year test program that started in September 2015, Richard Hogan’s Commuter Craft is prepping for ShipTwo, the second and final company aircraft before moving into an “alpha test” stage. ShipTwo is expected to be the final design as far as pilots are concerned, but the Cartersville, Georgia-based company plans to work with five experienced builders to test the build experience before unleashing their kit on the broader market in the fall of 2018.
Commuter Craft used ShipOne to validate the aircraft’s stall/spin resistance and slow flight characteristics, which Hogan reports were benign and as one would expect from a canard-controlled aircraft. Hogan says ShipOne had roll rates that were probably too high for non-aerobatic use and the canopy wasn’t the ideal configuration for easy access—both problems that will be fixed in ShipTwo.
Hogan says the final consumer-facing kit airplane will have a top speed just over 200 MPH with a final approach speed around 75 MPH. Commuter Craft intends for builders to come to the company’s facility to assemble their airplane with the company’s tooling and under the company’s expert supervision. Someday, Hogan wants to build a roadable version for last-mile trips to and from the airport, which he expects will be licensed as a motorcycle and use electric wheel motors for propulsion on the ground.
