Berger BX-110

BX-110
General information
TypeUtility helicopter
ManufacturerHans Berger
Number built1
History
First flight3 June 1974

The Berger BX-110 was a prototype light helicopter built in Switzerland in the early 1970s. The single example (registration HB-YAK) was built by Hans Berger, a Swiss inventor and helicopter dealer. It was powered by a Wankel automotive engine and remained on the Swiss civil register until 1994. It was of conventional light helicopter configuration, with pilot and passenger sitting side by side under a large perspex bubble canopy, with the tail rotor carried on a tubular boom. The powerplant and fuel tanks were located behind the cabin, and the three-bladed main rotor had foldable blades. Landing gear was originally of skid type.

Originally powered by a converted NSU Ro 80 Wankel-type automotive engine, Berger later fitted a BMW 6012 turbine to the aircraft, and later still another adapted automotive Wankel engine, this time from a Mazda RX-7. At the time of the latter conversion, the undercarriage was changed to tricycle configuration.

Specifications (final configuration)

General characteristics

  • Crew: one pilot
  • Capacity: 1 passenger
  • Length: 6.05 m (19 ft 10 in)
  • Height: 2.57 m (8 ft 5 in)
  • Empty weight: 400 kg (880 lb)
  • Gross weight: 720 kg (1,590 lb)
  • Powerplant: 1 × Mazda RX-7 automotive engine , 86 kW (115 hp)
  • Main rotor diameter: 7.40 m (24 ft 3 in)
  • Main rotor area: 43.0 m2 (463 sq ft)

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 175 km/h (109 mph, 95 kn)
  • Service ceiling: 2,800 m (9,184 ft)
  • Rate of climb: 4.0 m/s (790 ft/min)

References

  • Taylor, Michael J. H. (1989). Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation. London: Studio Editions. p. 153.
  • Jane's All the World's Aircraft 1973-74 p. 188
  • Cockpit (December 1989)


See also