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| legato |
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adv. |
[a smooth and connected manner of performance] |
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n. |
[a new airplane design looking for an engine] |
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| Airplanes can be no better than their engines. |
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| The Legato is a design looking for an engine. It makes no sense in the year 2005 to commit to an engine design that is 50 years old. It makes no sense to design an airplane that uses a fuel whose life cycle may be nearing an end. |
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Many new aircraft projects suffer in the end from design objectives that are too far out of reach. Goals for the Legato are modest. They include:
- Four place.
- All aluminum structure (with compound contours)
- Retractable gear.
- 230 mph cruise.
- 3.5 hr range
- 48 inch cabin width.
- Air conditioning.
- Glass cockpit
- Ballistic parachute
- Modern styling
- Conventional configuration (the Wright Brothers Flyer was probably the last unconventional configuration that succeeded).
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| Click here to learn more about the issues with the engine. |
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