Adaro Chirta

Chirta
Role	Trainer
National origin	Spain
Designer	Julio Adaro Tarradillos
First flight	c.1935
Number built	1

The Adaro 1.E.7 Chirta was a Spanish military trainer aircraft built shortly before the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War.

Design and development

Designed in 1934 in response to a Spanish Air Force requirement as part of its modernisation programme, the Chirta was a conventional sesquiplane, constructed of wood and metal and seating the student and instructor in tandem open cockpits. Slightly tapered wings had ailerons only on the upper wings; unusually, these covered the full span. Fuel was carried in an upper wing tank. There was a cut-out in the trailing edge of the upper wing for better upward visibility from the rear seat; the front seat was under the wing. A triangular fin carried a slightly rounded, unbalanced rudder. The tailskid undercarriage had faired wheels on V-form main legs. The Chirta was intended to undertake fighter training and to be fully aerobatic.^[1]

Completed in July 1935^{[citation needed]} it was evaluated against the Gil-Pazó GP-1, Loring X, and Hispano HS-34 during 1935-6. It came third in the trials at Cuatro Vientos, so no production contract was awarded. No further examples were built, though the prototype survived undamaged until at least November 1936, when Francoist forces captured Cuatro Vientos.^[1]

Specifications

Data from Howson^[1]

General characteristics

• Crew: 2
• Length: 6.50 m (21 ft 4 in)
• Wingspan: 10.00 m (32 ft 10 in)
• Height: 2.5 m (8 ft 2 in)
• Wing area: 17.7 m² (191 sq ft)
• Empty weight: 480 kg (1,058 lb)
• Gross weight: 730 kg (1,609 lb)
• Powerplant: 1 × Walter Junior 4-cylinder, air cooled inverted inline piston, 88 kW (118 hp)

Performance

• Maximum speed: 180 km/h (110 mph; 97 kn)
• Stall speed: 70 km/h (43 mph; 38 kn)
• Service ceiling: 5,050 m (16,568 ft)

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} Howson, Gerald (1990). Aircraft of the Spanish Civil War. London: Putnam Aeronautical Books. p. 35. ISBN 0 85177 842 9.