St-Just Cyclone Explained

The St-Just Cyclone, also called the St-Just Cyclone 180, is a Canadian homebuilt aircraft that was designed and produced by St-Just Aviation of Mirabel, Quebec. The company has since moved to Boucherville, Quebec. While it was available the aircraft was supplied as a kit and in the form of plans for amateur construction.[1]

The Cyclone was later developed into the higher gross weight (3500lb) St-Just Super-Cyclone, which superseded it in production.

In 2021, the rights to the Cyclone aircraft were acquired by Bushliner Aircraft LLC of Granite Falls, WA.

Design and development

The Cyclone is a replica of the Cessna 180 that incorporates modifications and improvements, such as an extended wing span, greater wing area and vertically hinged doors. It features a strut-braced high-wing, a four-seat enclosed cabin accessed via doors, fixed conventional landing gear and a single engine in tractor configuration.

The aircraft is made from sheet aluminum, with the kit airframe parts preformed with pilot holes to allow construction without the use of jigs. Its 381NaN1 span wing employs a NACA 2412 airfoil, mounts flaps and has a wing area of 181square feet. The acceptable power range is 200to and the standard engine used is the 2300NaN0 Continental O-470.

The Cyclone has a typical empty weight of 1700lb and a gross weight of 3000lb, giving a useful load of 1300lb.

The manufacturer estimated the construction time from the supplied kit as 2000 hours.

Operational history

In December 2013, 23 examples were registered in Canada with Transport Canada and three in the United States with the Federal Aviation Administration.[2] [3]

Notes and References

  1. Purdy, Don: AeroCrafter - Homebuilt Aircraft Sourcebook, Fifth Edition, page 126. BAI Communications, 15 July 1998.
  2. Web site: Canadian Civil Aircraft Register. 16 December 2013. Transport Canada. 16 December 2013. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20110718042755/http://wwwapps2.tc.gc.ca/Saf-Sec-Sur/2/ccarcs/aspscripts/en/quicksearch.asp. 18 July 2011.
  3. Web site: Make / Model Inquiry Results. 16 December 2013. Federal Aviation Administration. 16 December 2013.