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All New Sling 4 TSi

We are at EAA Air venture 2018 in Oshkosh Wisconsin, and today we finally meet the newly redesigned Sling 4 aircraft. the South African airplane manufacturer Airplane factory has since promised this new model of a modern 4-seater airplane, and yes they truly delivered.

A brief history on the Sling 4 – This was a light aircraft designed by Mike Blyth from South Africa. The Sling 4 boasts to carry 4 full adults with full fuel and still climb at or close to 1000 feet per minute while using a small 115 horse power rotax engine. This was a great power to weight ratio platform. The aircraft is beautiful to behold, trust me. But the only downside I personally saw was that I felt that the sling 4 was a bit under powered. For a 4-seater airplane, a bit more power can go a long way.

Here was my first review of the Sling 4

Fast forward 3 years later. Airplane Factory has delivered yet again with an all new and improved platform in the Sling 4. The newest model is known as the Sling 4 TSi.

And here is what you get precisely with the New TSi

  1. More Power – The new sling 4 tsi is equipped with a more powerful rotax 915 engine. Producing 141 horsepower.
  2. Beefier body frame – well maybe not so much beefier, but you do get newly redesigned larger wings and slightly bigger frame to handle the heavier 135 HP turbo charged engine
  3. New propellers – Again because of the larger engine and increased power, you need a slightly bigger propeller to maximize all that extra performance you will get from the new 915 engine
  4. Better performance – The new TSi will climb at 1600 feet per minute and cruise between 135 knots to 150 knots at altitude. That’s a significant increase in performance from the 115 hp sling 4. And all of this is achieved while burning only 8-10 gallons of fuel per hour.
  5. Increase in price – Expect a slight increase in the cost of the aircraft for the performance you’re getting. You are paying more for the engine, body frame and propeller. Expect about $20,000 more for the new Tsi. Not bad for all the extras you will be getting.

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