The Bug first flew in February 1999. The aircraft was designed to be an inexpensive and easy to fly three axis controlled aircraft similar to a
primary glider, although the designer terms it an
airchair. The Bug has an empty weight of under and so qualifies to be operated under the United States
FAR 103 Ultralight Vehicles regulations. The aircraft is made available as technical drawings, not plans, to allow potential builders to study them. Sandlin makes his
computer assisted design drawings available free of charge as downloads in
.dxf,
.dwf and
.gif formats and has explicitly released them to the
public domain. The Bug 4 drawings comprise 66 sheets. The designer considers his aviation activities a hobby only. The aircraft is made from bolted together
aluminium tube, braced with
steel cables and covered with heat shrunk
Dacron fabric. Its span wing uses V-shaped
interplane struts. Controls are conventional three axis, with the
ailerons and
elevator controlled by a
center stick and
rudder controlled by pedals. The landing gear is a fixed
monowheel gear. The pilot sits on an open cockpit seat without a windshield and is secured with a four-point harness. The aircraft is designed to be car-top transportable and can be assembled by one person. The Bug is designed to be launched by
aerotow behind an ultralight aircraft,
auto-tow,
winch-launch or by rolling it down a slope. It is flown for
soaring and is not recommended for
aerobatics. ==Variants==