The Astra was derived from a P&M Aviation trike design and intended to comply with the US light-sport aircraft category, although it does not appear on the Federal Aviation Administration's accepted LSA list.[2] [3]
The Astra features a cable-braced hang glider-style high-wing, weight-shift controls, a two-seats-in-tandem open cockpit with a cockpit fairing, tricycle landing gear with wheel pants and a single engine in pusher configuration.
The aircraft is made from bolted-together aluminum tubing, with its double surface wing covered in Dacron sailcloth. Its 34.41NaN1 span wing is supported by a single tube-type kingpost and uses an "A" frame weight-shift control bar. Powerplants that were factory available were the twin cylinder, air-cooled, two-stroke, dual-ignition 500NaN0 Rotax 503, the four cylinder, air and liquid-cooled, four-stroke, dual-ignition 800NaN0 Rotax 912UL and 1000NaN0 Rotax 912ULS and the twin cylinder, air-cooled, four-stroke, dual-ignition 600NaN0 HKS 700E engine.
With the HKS powerplant the aircraft has an empty weight of 4850NaN0 and a gross weight of 9600NaN0, giving a useful load of 4750NaN0.
The aircraft was produced under contract for Stellar Aircraft in India by Albatross Flying Systems, who also marketed the design in Asia as the Cruiser.
