The first flight of the Vickers Wave amphibious LSA has been delayed.
Originally due to fly for the first time on 20 July, the New Zealand designed and developed aircraft will now not fly until late August at the earliest.
Paul Vickers, CEO of Vickers Aircraft, said this morning that the aircraft would not be ready and he and his team were not going to rush it simply for the sake of hitting a predicted date.
“We have always been driven by safety and quality, not dates," he told Australian Flying. "We will always take the time that is required.”
The Wave is a two-place, carbon-fibre, high-wing amphibian powered by a 141-hp Rotax 915 iS turbo, which promises a 15,000-foot ceiling, 1400 fpm rate-of-climb, 120 KTAS max speed and an eight-hour endurance from the 189 litre tanks.
The cockpit is being fitted with single-lever operation for the engine and CSU, and Garmin G3X avionics.