Back then, stalls and spins claimed many more lives than today, so Weick's Ercoupe was given limited elevator travel (13 degrees up, in the early models) and a wing design that makes it incapable of stalling or spinning. Well, at least not held in a stall in which the wings are entirely stalled. You could do a hammerhead or whip stall, but the turbulent airflow from the stalled wing roots would disrupt the air moving over the elevator. This, together with the limited elevator travel, means that there would be insufficient elevator authority to maintain the airplane in even an aggravated stall. The airplane can, however, mush earthwards in a sprightly manner, which helps to explain why it has no flaps.
展开▼