The ERCO Ercoupe is a low wing monoplane first manufactured by the Engineering and Research Corporation (ERCO) shortly before World War II, production continued after World War II by several other manufacturers until 1967. It was designed to be the safest fixed-wing aircraft that aerospace engineering could provide at the time, and the type still enjoys a very faithful following today.

Background
Fred Weick designed the W-1 with tricycle landing gear. It is shown in March 1934.

In late 1931, aeronautical engineer Fred Weick was the assistant chief of the aeronautics division of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA). In 1934, Weick asked permsion to build a aircraft based on the 1931 Stout Skycar with fabric instead of aluminum covering, and control modifications based on NACA research. Weick and a group of co-workers designed and assembled the experimental aircraft with a group of his colleagues who worked on the project in their spare time and paid for it themselves. The test aircraft built by Weick, known as the W-1, featured tricycle landing gear, a high parasol wing, and a pusher propeller configuration.

Fred Weick listed the W1 design goals that were tested in later seminers....

* The tricycle landing gear with castering nose wheel, steerable if desired.
* Suitable longitudinal and lateral stability with definitely limited upward elevator travel to prevent loss of control due to stalling and spinning.
* A glide-control flap.
* Two-control operation using pitching and rolling controls.

In 1934 the Bureau of Air Commerce approached Weick's team looking for standards for a competition for a safe and practical $700 aircraft. In 1936 the winner of the competition was the Stearman-Hammond Y-1, incorporating many of the safety features of the W-1. Two other winners were the Waterman Aeroplane and a roadable autogyro from the Autogyro Company of America. The W-1 was not inteded for production to qualify as a competitor, but was purchased by the bureau for continued experimental tests in spin-control safety. After a forced landing of the W-1, a updated W-1A was built by Fairchild, incorporating leading edge cuffs.

Weick left NACA in 1936 and joined ERCO's fledgling aircraft team as chief designer, primarily to continue improving his aircraft design. Focusing his efforts on a number of design issues, primarily simplicity and safety, Weick strove to create a reasonably priced aircraft that would not stall or spin. Retaining the tricycle gear (for ease of maneuvering on the ground), and limited stall-spin features, Weick switched to a low-wing monoplane configuration in his new model, powered by a tractor propeller configuration.

The ERCO 310, which included a fully cowled engine, made its first flight in October 1937 and was soon renamed the "Ercoupe". The easy-to-fly design included unique design features, including a large glazed canopy for great visibility. Lacking rudder pedals, the Ercoupe was flown entirely using only a control wheel: a two-control system linked the rudder and aileron systems, which controlled yaw and roll, with the steerable nose wheel. This wheel controlled the pitch and the steering of the aircraft, both on the ground and in the air, simplifying control and coordinated turning and eliminating the need for rudder pedals. A completely new category of pilot's license had to be created for Ercoupe pilots who had never used a rudder pedal.

Design and development
The Ercoupe contained many innovative design features that produced an aircraft that was safe, easy to fly, and certified by the Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) as "characteristically incapable of spinning." The aircraft was designed by Fred E. Weick, a noted aeronautical engineer, who before coming to ERCO in 1936, worked for the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA). The first experimental model of the Ercoupe was test flown at College Park airport in 1937. Construction of the production prototype was completed in 1939 and certification by the CAA was completed in 1940. The first Ercoupe, serial no. 1, was owned by George Brinckerhoff and flown at College Park Airport,later purchased and flown by Robert Whipperman who donated it to the National Air and Space Museum.

Targeted at the non-professional pilot, the Ercoupe was also designed to be spin-proof with no dangerous stall characteristics. A placard, which was the first for any aircraft, was allowed to be placed proudly on the instrument panel reading: "This aircraft characteristically incapable of spinning." An elevator that could move upward and downward only a limited amount—13 degrees—plus automatic yaw correction, enabled the aircraft to actually fly itself out of a spin. Inexpensive to operate and maintain, the Ercoupe was able to fly into and out of small airfields, and its nose-wheel steering made taxiing almost like driving an automobile. The landing gear was also beefed up to allow for landing in a crabbed attitude in crosswinds since there were no rudder pedals to correct for runway alignment. When the main gear touched town, the side forces were absorbed and the nose would automatically swing forward to align the aircraft with the runway.

The two-seat ERCO Ercoupe 415 went on sale in 1940. LIFE magazine featured the aircraft as "nearly foolproof" showing a series of pictures with the pilot landing with his hands in the air. Only 112 were delivered before World War II intervened, halting all civil aircraft production. By mid-1941, aluminum supplies were being diverted to war-related production, so ERCO decided to manufacture Ercoupes for military use by using wood as the principal building material. The substitution of wood resulted in a heavier Ercoupe, but the aircraft flew much more quietly because the wood absorbed vibrations from the engine and air flow. Ercoupes were flown during the war by the Civilian Pilot Training Program for flight instruction, and the Civil Air Patrol used them to patrol for German submarines.

Specifications (1949 Ercoupe 415-G)
General characteristics
* Crew: 1
* Capacity: 1 passenger
* Length: 20 ft 2 in (6.26 m)
* Wingspan: 30 ft 0 in (9.14 m)
* Height: 5 ft 6 in (1.7 m)
* Wing area: 142.6 ft² (13.25 m²)
* Empty weight: 815 lb (370 kg)
* Max takeoff weight: 1,400 lb (640 kg)
* Powerplant: 1× Continental C-85-12F, 85 hp (63 kW) at 2,575 rpm

Performance
* Never exceed speed: 125 kn (144 mph, 232 km/h)
* Maximum speed: 99 kn (114 mph, 183 km/h)
* Cruise speed: 96 kn (110 mph, 178 km/h)
* Stall speed: 37 kn (43 mph, 69 km/h)
* Range: 360 NM (416 mi, 670 km)
* Service ceiling: 13,500 ft (4,115 m)
* Rate of climb: 550 ft/min (2.8 m/s)

Source: Wikipedia.org.