Home
LINKS
Email:
moderator@CH601.org
Chris Heintz & The Zodiac CH601XL
On Thursday November 22 my wife, Lisa and I made the pilgrimage to Zenair, which is the Canadian headquarters of the Zenith Aircraft Company located in Midland Ontario. My purpose for the trip was to interview Chris Heintz and test flight the demonstrator Zodiac 601XL. Upon our arrival Derek Mackie (pictured with the 601XL), who is the Midland General Manager indulged us with the grand tour of the Zenair facility and pointed out the operations that went on at the site. The Zenair branch of the Zenith Aircraft Company facilitates the production of the parts for the Certified CH2000 as well as the new Zodiac 4-seater CH640 kit. However, that is not the main purpose of the Midland site. Since it is the area in which Chris Heintz resides it is also the sole area of research and development for new designs and testing of prototypes, of which two are presently in the design phase. The CH152, is a high wing, two place side-by-side airplane that is designed to take advantage of the new sport plane category proposed in the United States. The present scheduled release is set for Oshkosh 2002. The twin engine Gemini 620 which should see a number change to the Gemini 630 due to it’s redesign from a 2 seater to a 3 seater is scheduled for release in the summer of 2003 if all testing goes according to schedule.
Originally introduced in 1984, the Zodiac design has a proven record of accomplishments. Designed in the Chris Heintz way using Avex blind rivets, construction of the Zodiac airplanes are simple and fast with kit build times varying from 400 hours to 900 hours depending on the builder, and with the option of scratch building directly from the plans with an estimated build time of 1500 hours. The layout of the 601 makes building a joy. It is easily shared with your family members or you may build it completely alone. Since each section is broken down into completion modules, a sense of accomplishment is going to be had every time you finish a section. As Chris points out you’re not building a whole plane at once, first your building a rudder, then a stabilizer an elevator and so on. At the end of each piece you can stand back and look upon what you have finished and then move on to the next piece with renewed enthusiasm every time.
The
601XL evolved upon the best parts of the past models with improvement in all the
areas that were thought to be shortcomings. Some of the design changes are a new
tapered airfoil with a larger wing area than its predecessor and a higher
payload, new wing flaps, increased baggage compartment, longer legroom and a new
main monoleaf rear suspension attached to the fuselage. The XL also has a
forward tilting canopy and the ability to handle increased horsepower and power
plant weight. The release of the CH601XL has seen sales eclipse both the HD and
HDS models combined, with the UL version already discontinued in North America.
Also being phased out are the HD and HDS, possibly in the next year or two
leaving the CH601XL as the sole surviving Zodiac 601 being offered to new
builders. Support for the three previous versions of the 601 as with any
previous Chris Heintz designs will not diminish with new photographic
walkthroughs evolving for the HD and HDS to aid in construction techniques.
After untying
the 601XL and a close pre-flight inspection, Derek taxied over to the Midland
airport fuel depot and filled the two 12 U.S. gallon leading edge wing tanks.
The 601XL has eliminated the header tank, which has also eliminated the smell of
fuel in the cockpit from the vented fuel cap on the previous 601 models. This
also increases the room behind the control panel for deeper instruments. As we
taxied out and did our pre-flight check, the Jabaru 3300 seemed to purr along
without a hiccup. On the runway, Derek advanced the throttle and within 500 ft,
the nose could no longer resist the calling for altitude. At 50 mph, the Zodiac
leapt into the air and climbed out at 1200 fpm sometimes touching 1400, which
put us in a pattern of 3000 ft in no time flat. After a light bank, we cruised
at 135mph to a testing area and put the 601 through a few manoeuvres. First came
stalls without flaps; with the speed reduced and the stick pulled back we were
looking for a stall at about 50 mph. The plane started to tell you without any
doubt that it was approaching a stall state, with the control stick really
shuddering at 45 mph and a full stall realized at 40 mph and a mil
d
wing dip to starboard. Recovery is achieved instantaneously simply by releasing
pressure on the stick. With flaps extended to the 30 degree position, the XL
started really buffeting and even oil canning a bit on the bottom fuselage at 40
mph and a stall resulted at 30mph but this time there was no wing dip just a
clean straight stall. This was very impressive to me and showed that it takes a
determined effort to get this plane to stall and the amount of advanced notice
is unbelievable. If you unintentionally stall the Zodiac 601XL without
recognizing the warning signs, then it is time for you to get a new hobby
because you are just not safe enough to fly. The recovery in all the stalls we
did was prompt and simple every time, with the plane happily bouncing back like
man’s best friend on a sunny Sunday afternoon in the park. Next came turn and
bank. Once again, for a plane that costs this little and with a kit build time
of 400 hrs you get far more then you thought possible. I asked Derek to show me
what the 601 was capable of, and since he was far more experienced than I am in
the 601’s he took the center mounted “Y” stick and swung us into high speed
banks and spins. Now these type’s of manoeuvres are not for everyone and you
STOL lovers may wish to decline such an experience but for the lovers of roller
coasters you better have taken your Gravol because the 601XL is going to give
you a ride that you will stop long before you reach the planes capabilities. A
“G” meter would have been nice if it were installed but the cheeks on my face
wanting to visit the rudder was telling me plenty. Then came the climb out and
the instant bank in the other direction and with a short spell of my nose
wishing to leave my face once again my face was off to visit the rudder. At an
80 degree bank the control of the XL still seemed effortless and released
pressure on the “Y” center stick flings the plane back into trimmed flight in
record time. While some builders opt for installing hinges on the ailerons for a
more responsive plane, the Zodiac CH601XL demonstrator had the designed
hingeless setup. While it is not as responsive as the hinged aileron it is
definitely snappy enough for most experienced builders and you won’t be flying
on long trips fatigued from constant correction, as the hingless operation makes
straight cruising almost a hands free operation.
Next came the landing and as we turned to final Derek lowered the flaps to 30 degrees and brought the 601XL in with a full sideslip. We approached at 80 mph, over the fence at 70 mph and touched down at 60 mph, with the flaps fully extended once again I could hear some oil canning coming from the bottom of the fuselage. It would seem that at no other time did the plane oilcan except when it had full flaps and was close to stall speed with the noise always coming from the rear bottom fuselage. The skins on the wings have been beefed up with .025 6061 T6 aluminium over the previous models .016 skins. However, I also think that the disturbance from the fully extended flaps helped the light Zodiac achieve a more centred approach. We letdown without a real need for a flair and within a few hundred feet we were on the taxi way going to pick up Lisa for her test flight. The Newest Zodiac is pure enjoyment in the air for about the same price as a motorcycle. It’s 44 inch cabin width is ample room for my 220lb frame with lots of head room above and a good amount of distance to the control panel which makes the 601 feel far larger then it actually is. The view from that canopy is completely unhindered and in a bank, the view is nothing short of spectacular. Trimmed flight leaves about three fingers width of horizon above the dashboard, which leaves lots of time for gaping outside at the landscape below.
With
Lisa on her demo flight, I had a chance to sit with Chris Heintz in his office
and ask a few questions of him. The first draft of plans for the New CH640 have
recently been released so that scratch builders can start on this new model, but
Chris had informed me that much finer detailed set of drawings will be released
at a later date. In addition, Chris had just finalized and approved the plans
for the CH801 so that in the near future it will also be available as a scratch
buildable project. In addition, they are working on a pictorial walkthrough for
most models, which supplement the building plans as they have for the Zodiac
CH601XL. I was also interested in the future of the Zenith Aircraft Company and
it’s future growth. Chris informed me that the future of Zenith looks great with
new planes on the drawing board and with greater control in the hands of his
children, he is looking forward to retiring sometime in the future and points to
the year 2003. Now he is swift to add that he wishes to withdraw from the
everyday grind of running one of the most prolific aircraft kit manufactures,
and wishes only to design, prototype, and test new planes. As Chris leaned back
in his chair, he reflected on the fact that he wishes to complete an already
begun book on his life and designs. As well, he plans to design and see to
completion several new planes that he has been contemplating. His sons are
contributing to the latest designs with their knowledge from their engineering
technologist diplomas. As I left the Zenair buildings, I realized that we are
just starting to see a new level of professionalism in this company that we have
not seen before, and the prospects for the future are very enticing. Better
means of communication, better quality building plans, easier walkthrough
building procedures altogether make the future of the Zenith Aircraft Company
look very promising indeed. Chris Heintz will now have more time on his hands
exclusively for designing, and is just brimming full of new ideas for future kit
planes.
~ Mark Townsend