SilverLight Aviation

SilverLight Aviation is a light sport aircraft manufacturer in Zephyrhills, Florida, near Tampa, and the home of the American Ranger 1 (AR-1) gyroplane and the Recon quick-build kit airplane, both made in the USA. Its 12,000 square foot factory in the greater Tampa Bay area benefits from near year-round weather for test flying, and builder assistance is available on site. The company was started by a founding engineer of the US partnership that produced the Apollo LSA, a light sport version of the Hungarian Apollo Fox, which SilverLight still supports.

AR-1 gyroplane

• Award-winning tandem gyroplane described on the site as the first factory-built US production gyroplane to meet ASTM and MOSAIC safety standards, with speeds from 25 mph to as high as 110 mph and good handling in turbulence and high wind
• High-inertia Stella aluminium alloy rotor system by Averso with more than 14 years of service history, a welded stainless steel frame, fibreglass composite fairing and an effective tail
• Metal tube controls rather than push-pull cables, 7075-T6 aluminium leaf spring main landing gear with lift-generating composite fairings, composite three or four blade propeller, parking brake, electric speed trim, mechanical pre-rotator and rotor brake
• Choice of Rotax 912ULS or fuel-injected 912iS 100 hp engines, or the turbocharged, fuel-injected Rotax 915iS with 141 hp and redundant FADEC

Recon quick-build airplane

• Folding high-wing design developed with the Hungarian manufacturing partners as the bigger brother of the Apollo Fox platform, almost a foot and a half longer with a redesigned tail, a different wing platform for more lift and larger baggage capacity
• Gross weight of 1,320 lb for light sport or up to 1,450 lb for private pilot owners, with standard 100 hp or 160 hp engine options
• Wings folded by one person in 10 to 15 minutes and clear or tinted polycarbonate for all-round visibility

Services

SilverLight publishes pricing, manuals, bulletins and directives and an independent AR-1 pilot review, offers gyroplane flight training and, since 2012, aviation engineering consulting by Abid Farooqui, an expert in light sport aviation with over 20 years of experience who has led ASTM compliance processes and FAA audits for manufacturers including Progressive Aerodyne, American Legend, Evolution Trikes, Skyrunner and Texas Aircraft. Office hours are Monday to Friday, 9 am to 5 pm.

Shows

SilverLight Aviation appears in the exhibitor lists of Sun 'n Fun Aerospace Expo 2027 and EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2027.

Contact

Zephyrhills, FL 33542, United States
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