Applebay started the Chiricahua as a standard class sailplane in 1959, but the aircraft was not completed for 11 years, first flying in 1970. It was named for the Chiricahua people, a group of Apache Native Americans.
The aircraft is made from wood and covered in a combination of plywood and doped Ceconite. Its 151NaN1 span wing employs a Göttingen 549 airfoil and features Schempp-Hirth style top surface airbrakes. As originally specified for the standard class, the landing gear was a fixed monowheel.[2]
Only one example was built.
On 7 July 1974 at New River, Arizona the prototype, N9413, was involved in an accident and substantially damaged. The aircraft was on a soaring flight, ran out of lift, made an attempted landing on a road in a 200NaN0 crosswind and struck a tree. The 24-year-old pilot, who had 32 hours of flying time total, including 11 hours on type, was not injured.[3] The aircraft has since been re-registered as N53MB.[4]
