LANCAIR “IV/IV-P/PROPJET”
Lancair IVP Lancair Turbine IVP STANDARD DATA: IV Seats 4. Gross wt. 3,200. Empty wt. 1,750. Fuel capacity 82. Engine 350-hp Continental TSIO-550. PERFORMANCE: Top mph 361. Cruise mph 341….
 Lancair IVP |  Lancair Turbine IVP |
| STANDARD DATA: IV Seats 4. Gross wt. 3,200. Empty wt. 1,750. Fuel capacity 82. Engine 350-hp Continental TSIO-550. PERFORMANCE: Top mph 361. Cruise mph 341. Initial climb rate 2,600. Ceiling 35,000. Range 1,450. Takeoff distance 1,200. Landing distance 1,900. STANDARD DATA: IV-P Seats 4. Gross wt. 3,550. Empty wt. 2,000. Fuel capacity 82. Engine 350-hp Legacy Continental TSIO-550. STANDARD DATA: PROPJET Seats 4. Gross wt. 3,550. Empty wt. 2,200. Fuel capacity 125. Engine 750-hp Walter 601E turbine. |
The Lancair IV was a natural progression from the 235 and the 320. Lance Neibauer wanted to build a four-place retractable that would give him and the kitbuilder the most bang for the buck. The IV is essentially a scaled-up version of the 320 with a 30-ft. wingspan and a twin-turbo 350-hp Continental swinging a three-blade constant-speed prop. The aircraft is faster, lighter, roomier, has more useful load, and is less expensive than any aircraft in its class. Since its introduction in 1991, the Lancair IV has broken many speed and altitude records for its class type and at altitude has reached sustained speeds in excess of 395 mph with no tailwind. The entire airframe is constructed of vacuum-formed, oven-cured, prepreg carbon fiber. Building time is approximately 2,500 hours.
A pressurized version, the Lancair IV-P is also available, only the fourth single engine piston with that achievement. The IV-P is structurally quite different and is designed to operate with an impressive 5.0 psi cabin differential pressure. This equates to a "cabin altitude" of just 8,500 ft. when you're cruising at FL240
(24,000 ft.).
In 2000, Lancair began testing the ultimate IV-P by replacing the piston engine with a Walter 601E turbine. By 2001, the idea was flying and became available to kit builders shortly afterward. As expected, the turbine-powered performance is remarkable.
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