AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2018 - 36

PILOT BRIEFING
BUDGET BUY

|
VREF VALUE

Vref, which offers aircraft value
for AOPA members, suggests
a base value of the Ercoupe of
between $18,000 and $25,000.
HOW MANY IN THE FLEET?

4,309 ERCO 415-Cs were built
in 1946 alone; subsequent manufacturers sold another 1,170.
INSURANCE COSTS

AOPA Insurance Services
estimates that insurance for an
Ercoupe flown by a low-time
pilot will cost between $550
and $600 per year.
FINANCING

AOPA Finance estimates a
monthly payment of $230,
based on a $20,000 loan with
20 percent down and a 10-year
term at 6.5 percent.

Ercoupe 415-C
A postwar super-success with an enduring following
BY THOMAS A. HORNE

THE ERCOUPE-so named because the first models were built by the Engineering and Research
Corporation (ERCO) of Riverdale, Maryland-has a following of enthusiastic owners. It's a
two-seater built for simplicity, safety, and fun flying, and was technologically advanced in
its day. It's stall- and spin-resistant thanks to limited elevator travel, has excellent roll stability due to its large wing dihedral, has minimal left-turning tendency effects because its twin
rudders are mounted out of the propeller's blast, and has good landing traits because of its
tricycle landing gear and trailing-link main gear. These all were firsts for a GA airplane in
1937, when the design debuted. Stalls and spins claimed many pilots' lives back then, and the
Ercoupe was engineered to counter the trend. Its designer was the legendary Fred Weick,
who went on to craft Piper's Pawnee agplane and Cherokee line of piston singles.
Flying an Ercoupe can be counterintuitive for the uninitiated. First there's the taxi, which
means you make turns using the control yoke, like a car-an intentional design element meant
to ease the learning curve from car to Ercoupe. Early model 415-C Ercoupes came with no
rudder pedals, just a single brake pedal. Rudder pedals were later offered as optional equipment, then as standard equipment in subsequent Ercoupes manufactured by a succession
of firms-ending in 1970 with Mooney producing 104 Ercoupes dubbed M-10 Cadets, and
featuring Mooney's signature forward-swept vertical stabilizer.
High-speed cruise with the 75-horsepower Continental engine in the 415-C is around 110
mph on a good day, and fuel burn is a miserly five gallons per hour or so. The Ercoupe operating handbook doesn't mention the word "stall," but does say that buffeting can occur three
miles per hour prior to reaching the ships' "minimum" speed. Hold the yoke all the way back
with power off and all you'll experience is a pretty impressive mushing descent while still
retaining roll control. The magic number for approach is 60 to 70 mph, and you can carry this
speed right to touchdown. In strong winds, landings at faster airspeeds are recommended.
Crosswind landings? Pilots are advised to land in a crab, as the tricycle gear's geometry and
directional stability will automatically straighten the airplane's track during the ground roll.
EMAIL tom.horne@aopa.org

36 | AOPA PILOT February 2018

AIRWORTHINESS DIRECTIVES

AD 2002-26-02, inspect wing
center section for corrosion;
2012-08-06, inspect aileron
balance assembly and ailerons.
BIGGEST PLUS

Fun to fly, draws a crowd.
BIGGEST MINUS

Tight fit for two larger occupants. High sink rates with low
power and airspeed.
THINGS TO WATCH OUT FOR

Many Ercoupes have lived long,
neglected lives, with some left
tied down in the open. Corrosion, especially in the wing
roots and center section, is
rampant.
AND ONE MORE THING...

Some put the Ercoupe down
precisely because it's so wellmannered, and thus not a "pilot's airplane." But the design
endures, partly because early
model 415-Cs are light enough
to qualify as Light Sport aircraft, but mainly because they
are just plain fun to fly: You can
slide down the canopy halves
and cruise with the wind in
your hair, your arm resting on
the window sill.

FOR MORE INFORMATION
Univair Aircraft Corporation of
Aurora, Colorado, now owns
the Ercoupe type certificate
and stock parts for Ercoupes
(888-433-5433; www.univair.
com).

http://www.univair.com http://www.univair.com

AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2018

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