Flying a Hand Control Sky Arrow at Spruce Creek

Gemini Sparkle

Key Takeaways:

  • Able Flight awards scholarships to help people with disabilities learn to fly.
  • The Sky Arrow aircraft, featuring hand controls, is central to Able Flight's program.
  • The hand controls on the Sky Arrow are easy to use and don't require significant strength.
  • A test flight of the Sky Arrow with hand controls took place at Spruce Creek Airpark in Florida.
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Standing with Jon Hansen and his Sky Arrow, I am holding the hand control lever [inset photo] that can be fitted in seconds. You push or pull to taxi steer and twist for throttle control. Photo by Randee Laskewitz

Maybe you’ve heard about Able Flight, an organization formed to assist people with disabilities to fly. This worthy effort recently awarded its first two scholarships with more to come. Sponsors are lining up and this summer will see a special presentation at AirVenture Oshkosh. The aircraft of Able Flight’s focus is the Sky Arrow which offers special hardware allowing the SLSA to be flown via hand controls. *** I had the chance to fly the Sky Arrow with Jon Hansen of Hansen Air Group, the eastern rep for Sky Arrow USA. We flew at Spruce Creek (near Daytona, Florida), which bills itself as the “World’s Finest Residential Airpark” and must also be one of the largest with some 500 homes that offer nearby parking for airplanes or an attached hangar. *** Flying Sky Arrow with the hand controls was different but highly effective. No great muscular strength is needed and the right techique is easily acquired.

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