Innovator Mosquito Air
INTRODUCTION The category of aircraft construction kits
is one that never used to be heard much about among aviation enthusiasts, however,
this has been changing little by little, and it is becoming more frequent to hear about new
projects such as these that seek to revolutionize the market and draw attention with different
proposals. Now, surely when you hear "aircraft construction kit," you automatically think of
an airplane, and I don't blame you, since they are the most popular and famous, but they are
not the only ones. Did you know that there are companies that develop construction kits so you
can assemble your own helicopter? Yes, there are, and best of all, they are compact vehicles that,
with just a few adjustments, you can store in your backyard without any problem. This is the case of
the Innovator Mosquito Air, the Mosquito Air XE, and its predecessors, aircraft with a simple and
minimalist design that makes you wonder if they can really take flight. And guess what? They can,
but there’s more! Their price is significantly lower than other proposals on the market, so this
makes it more accessible to people and gives them the chance to disconnect from the routine of
everyday life and enjoy the views from another perspective, while of course maintaining the
highest standards in terms of safety. You won't want to miss it!!!
DESIGN/EXTERIOR At first glance, the Innovator Mosquito Air stands
out; that is something undeniable since its design is, to say the least, unconventional, moving
away from the standards to which the industry has become accustomed. But more importantly, it
lives up to its name because, when you see its structure, it will most likely remind you of
just that: a mosquito. The Innovator Mosquito Air was designed by Canadian John Uptigrove as
a single-seat open cockpit helicopter without a windshield, which very few aircraft offer.
Although the design is sacrificed because it has an open structure, what guarantees you
a unique experience onboard this aircraft is the direct contact with the air. The fuselage is
made of 6061-T6 aircraft-grade aluminum tubing, a form of precipitation-hardened aluminum alloy
containing magnesium and silicon as the main elements. It uses a simple triangular structure,
with the tubes arranged straight to reduce weight, maximize strength, and greatly simplify
construction. Additionally, it uses a carbon fiber tail arm with support struts that add
structural rigidity to the Mosquito and improve its overall power-to-weight ratio. It is 20 feet
long, 6 feet wide, and 6.92 feet high. Some of its design features are its rear boom, made of carbon
fiber. The landing tripod legs are equipped with small anti-skid pads that help reduce lateral
movement during engine start and take-off and provide better grip on any surface when landing.
The main rotor has a diameter of 18 feet, while the tail rotor has a diameter of 3.33 feet.
The tail rotor is made of composite material, including an aluminum tube and a titanium
rod, as well as several rivets, ensuring good functionality, lightness, strength, and longevity.
The structure of the Innovator Mosquito Air served as the basis for the design of its successor, the
Mosquito XE, which is almost the same aircraft, but this time equipped with a closed cockpit,
offering great aerodynamic performance and an outstanding appearance, although it loses direct
contact with the air. Despite this, it became the company's most popular and profitable product.
INTERIOR Because it has room for only one passenger, the
interior of the Mosquito hides no secrets. These single-passenger helicopters have not been
designed with comfort and luxury in mind, so you won't find any of that here. Instead,
they have focused on developing a utilitarian and functional product. Inside the structure,
we find a semi-rigid seat lightly padded to provide extra comfort, which can be removed to
get access to the mechanical components of the aircraft for easy maintenance. In front of the
seat, we find the traditional flight controls, the collective pitch control, the cyclic pitch
control, and the anti-torque pedals that regulate the tail rotor, as well as the electronic
fuel, altitude, and power gauges. Basically, this is all we find inside the Mosquito,
and to add extra safety for the pilot, a seat belt can be installed.
ENGINE Both the Innovator Mosquito Air and the Mosquito
Air XE are powered by a Compact Radial Engines MZ202 piston engine, specially designed for use in
ultra-light aircraft due to their reduced weight of 75-lbs. This engine incorporates the electric
starter, carburetors, fuel pump, cooling system, and exhaust system. The MZ202 is an air-cooled,
reed-valve-controlled, two-cylinder, in-line, two-stroke engine with two Bing carburetors
and Nikasil-coated cylinders. It has one of the highest power-to-weight ratios on the engine
market and is capable of generating 63 horsepower. This engine employs reed induction, which produces
a very flat torque curve that ensures that power is consistently delivered at the required
operating torque. In addition, it has a speed of less than 6000 rpm, resulting in less stress
on the motor and increased reliability. To ensure maximum reliability, the engine ignition system
is fully electronic and therefore requires minimal maintenance. It includes a powerful 180-watt
alternator that provides power for the operation of the helicopter's entire electrical system.
PERFORMANCE Thanks to the MZ202 engine, the Mosquito reaches a
maximum range of 70 miles, as well as a top speed of 55 knots, and is able to reach a ceiling of
6,500 feet, however, it is not recommended to reach such a high altitude. It has an empty weight
of 254 pounds, and its gross weight goes up to 529 pounds, which translates into a payload of 275
pounds. Its rate of climb stands at 790 feet per minute, and the disk load is 2 pounds/square
foot. It has a fuel capacity of 5 gallons. The flight duration is a maximum of one hour, so
its use is practically limited to recreational flights or very short recognition flights. The
Mosquito XE, on the other hand, has the same engine but has a slightly larger unibody, so it
carries a larger fuel tank, reaching 12 gallons. It has a fuel burn rate of 6 gallons per hour,
which guarantees a flight time of almost 2 hours. It has an empty weight of 298 pounds and a maximum
gross weight of 610 pounds, facilitating a payload of 312 pounds. It has a climb rate of 900 feet
per minute, and can reach a top speed of 70 knots, with a maximum range of up to 150 miles.
AVIONICS AND SYSTEMS We have seen that sobriety is one of the key
features of this aircraft, so something to keep in mind is that, due to its classification
as an ultralight aircraft, its instrumentation consists only of a digital rotor tachometer, an
engine tachometer, an indicator of cylinder head temperature, an exhaust gas temperature, and an
air speed indicator. Composite FX, the company in charge of the production of these flying
machines, has a sophisticated virtual reality training system to help familiarize new pilots
with the controls and the entire flight system. So if you were thinking about getting
one, but were hesitant due to your lack of expertise with these machines, don’t worry,
as most pilots will become capable enough to operate the Mosquito without any problems
after 10 to 20 hours of practice with their virtual system.
VARIANTS The Mosquito Air without "XE" was the original
Mosquito haha, and its great performance quickly led to the design of an improved version based on
it, intended to reach a much wider public. This is how the 2004 Mosquito XE was born—the most
commercialized version and the one from which more variants have emerged. The Mosquito XE was
presented as a natural evolution, featuring a cab fairing and a more sophisticated exhaust system.
The powertrain, controls, and rotor systems also underwent minor modifications to better match the
XE design. To compensate for the additional gross weight, the diameter of the main rotor had to be
increased to 19.5 feet, while the diameter of the tail rotor remained at 40 inches. Because the XE
offers different supports, the collective control had to be adjusted to accommodate these. At least
three different variants were developed from the XE. The first was the Mosquito XEL, which was
introduced as a model with chassis modifications to equip a pair of standard floats in order to
be able to land and take off from the water. Its maximum flight time is 45 minutes, and a kit of
this model costs about 47,000 dollars. Next came the XE 290, considered the company's workhorse,
a flying beast with a water-cooled, fuel-injected CFX 800 engine capable of a maximum flight time of
2 hours, priced as a kit at $55,000. And finally, the XET. It uses jet fuel A, which powers its
great solar turbine engine (T62-T2A modified). Although its maximum flight time reaches only 1
hour, this aircraft is the most powerful model, and its price as a kit rises to 60,000 dollars.
MARKET The time has come to talk about the price of
this one-man helicopter, one of the aspects that have made it so popular among users all over
the world. The Innovator Mosquito Air went on sale in 2002 at a price of 28,000 dollars for
the kit. Finding another aircraft that offered the opportunity to fly, and even more, to fly with
the freedom offered by the Innovator Mosquito Air, at a lower price, was practically impossible.
Another highlight that caught the attention of many enthusiasts was its unique ability
to routinely perform 15- to 20-foot hover autorotations without any problems
and fully automatic landings on the ground with no effort. Also, its minimal fuel
consumption, which ranged from 4.5 gallons per hour to 8.5 gallons per hour, depending on the
model, translated into lower operating costs. After the attention the Mosquito Air got,
the company wanted to develop a single-seat helicopter that would meet European standards
for ultralights, with the clear intention of expanding the Mosquito's range and conquering
new markets, thus, the Mosquito XE was born. The XE kit was launched at a price of 46,000
dollars. The company followed a clear line, which was to basically put their aircraft on the market
for a similar cost to that of an average car, making them enormously attractive to potential
buyers. Now, no doubt one of the most fun aspects of the construction kits for enthusiasts is
that they give you the opportunity to make the assembly piece by piece, as if it were a Lego set,
either alone or with your father or your children. However, if assembly is not your
thing or you lack the time, skills, or patience to assemble one of these gadgets, you
can always purchase the factory-ready version, which costs between 12 and 16 thousand
dollars extra over the base price of the kit. The average time to assemble and mount
all the parts until the Mosquito is 100% operational is approximately 400 hours,
but this can vary depending on the user's experience. If it is a detail-oriented person
looking to assemble a flying work of art, the total time can be as much as 2,100 hours,
while if it is a user simply looking to get off the ground as quickly as possible, the
time can be even less than the standard 400 hours. The popularity of these kits has been
incredible, thanks to their attractive price, but also to their versatility. Although the
manufacturing company is based in the United States, they ship to every corner of the globe,
from Malaysia to Finland, Canada to Australia. There are no boundaries between you and the
mosquito; it doesn't matter where you are. The Mosquito Helicopters line is the result of
more than two decades of research, development, and innovation, and its intelligent design makes
helicopter flight accessible to pilots or future pilots who would like to experience this type of
flight. The varied applications for the Mosquito XE have led some farm owners in Australia, for
example, to use them for medium-altitude flights to monitor livestock or do preventive security
patrols more efficiently. In Iceland, they have been used to perform precision reconnaissance
flights and to be able to admire and photograph the beauty of volcanoes from a unique perspective.
Last but not least, these incredible helicopters have been used to assist in search and rescue
missions, so, yes, their applications are endless. PROS
Despite its compact size, the Mosquito was designed to have easier
handling characteristics than, for example, an R22, and was designed so that the main rotor
head can withstand up to three times the maximum energy it could theoretically ever produce
without damage or structural compromise. So, compared to most conventional helicopters, where
if 10% of the maximum rotor speed is exceeded, the head must be disassembled for inspection to ensure
that it has not been damaged, the Mosquito has a higher capacity in this area, which translates
into an additional built-in safety factor that its users will surely appreciate.
CONS Due to its reduced cabin space, it may be
uncomfortable for some people, especially those with great height. And with today's aircraft
standards, the Mosquito XE may be too simple for some users. Another aspect that has generated some
controversy around these helicopters, at least those equipped with the MZ202 engine, is that
Compact Radial Engines, the company that produces them, has acknowledged the inherent limitations of
the engine design and made it clear that it is not a proven engine for aeronautics. Despite this, the
number of mosquito helicopter accidents resulting from engine failures is practically zero.
CONCLUSION To summarize, today the Innovator
Mosquito Air is discontinued; however, it laid the foundations and demonstrated that
you can really fly without having to depend on support equipment. The most incredible thing
is that it allowed you to appreciate views as good as those that a bird would have. It
is an aircraft with a simple, intelligent, and reliable design. Its legacy continues
thanks to the XE and its respective variants, which allow the possibility of flying by
yourself to a much larger number of users. Did I convince you? So, what are you waiting
for? Get your own movie-style helicopter now!
