Writer

Amy Laboda

Tamarack Aerospace has unveiled the first of what it promises will be a series of active winglet systems designed to relieve wing bending loads caused by winglets. The company’s active technology load alleviation system (Atlas) is slated to be certified and available for installation on Cirrus SR22 G1 and G2 piston singles early next year, but Tamarack is also testing Atlas, which includes new winglets, on a Cessna CJ1. In fact, it brought an Atlas-equipped CJ1 to the NBAA Convention this week in Orlando, Fla., and is giving demonstration rides during the show.
Tamarack said yesterday that it is taking $10,000 deposits at NBAA 2012 for an Atlas active winglet system for the Cessna Citation CJ1. “The cost of the Atlas kit is estimated to be $196,000, and we are projecting it will take 80 man-hours to install the active winglets,” said Brian Willet, vice president of sales and flight operations for the company.
The Atlas employs a Tamarack active control surface (Tacs) actuator mounted near each winglet. The Tacs actuator drives small moveable surfaces mounted outboard on the wing trailing edge, near the winglets, and these surfaces move to counteract and alleviate the load on the wing. The result is a much lower bending moment on the wing, allowing addition of winglets without having to beef up wing structure.

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