A SMALL Prievidza-based company called Aerospool has manufactured over 420 two-seat Dynamic WT9 aeroplanes since 2001 and the planes have become legends in their class. In addition, home hobbyists with the proper technical skills have assembled another 50 Dynamic WT9 aeroplanes from components manufactured in Prievidza, the TASR newswire reported last July.
The Dynamic WT9 is at the top of its class in the world thanks to its excellent flight characteristics and reliability, TASR wrote. Most of the planes are in service in Germany and France according to Tadeáš Wala, the principal designer of the plane. But Dynamics also fly in the skies of other European countries as well as in Australia, New Zealand, Iran and the USA. Slovakia is home to about 20 of the planes.
It had been Wala’s long-time dream to build a small, engine-driven aeroplane that would not only be safe but also be relatively affordable to the wider public. His past professional life included designing reinforcements for underground mines and other facilities but simultaneously his passion was flying gliders, and after the fall of communism he began to manufacture gliders.
He launched his small workshop on the premises of the airport in Prievidza and later established the Aerospool company. Then he set out to fulfil his dream. It took him 10 years to manufacture a prototype plane with a petrol-fuelled engine that then received flight certification in Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Germany and other countries.
Respected aeronautical experts say that the Dynamic WT9 is something like a Mercedes in the light aeroplane category and some express surprise that the aircraft was brought to market by someone without extensive design and production capabilities.
The Dynamic WT9 is manufactured from advanced materials such as sandwich shells and carbon composites which bring its weight down to only 275 kilograms, TASR wrote. Another advantage is that it uses standard 95-octane petrol. The price of the plane, depending on its outfit, is less than €100,000. The costs of flying and maintenance, as well as the purchase price of the plane, are about two-thirds less than similar planes in its category.
