Lancair IV

Overview

The Lancair IV is a four-seat, retractable-gear composite kit aircraft, the unpressurized base model of Lancair International’s high-performance IV family, built from kits from the early 1990s into the 2010s. A 350-hp twin-turbocharged Continental TSIO-550 on a carbon-fiber airframe gives it cruise near 278 KTAS, performance that exceeds most certified piston singles on similar power. About 110 unpressurized IVs had flown by 2011, alongside the more numerous pressurized IV-P.

As an Experimental Amateur-Built aircraft, every IV is individually airworthiness-certificated and reflects its builder’s workmanship; there is no type certificate, and equipment, build quality, and resale vary by airframe. Buyers choosing the IV over the pressurized Lancair IV-P trade cabin pressurization for roughly 200 lb more useful load and a simpler, lighter airframe. It is a fast, slick airplane with high wing loading that rewards a current, disciplined pilot.

Key Features for GA Buyers

• 350-hp twin-turbocharged TSIO-550. Continental’s six-cylinder fuel-injected engine on a constant-speed propeller drives cruise near 278 KTAS at altitude.
• Composite airframe, 90-gallon fuel. Carbon-fiber construction with 90 gallons standard (110 with extended tanks) supports long legs at high true airspeeds.
• Useful load near 1,550 lb. Without the pressurization structure, the base IV carries roughly 200 lb more than the IV-P.
• High-altitude capability. A 29,000-foot service ceiling, flown on supplemental oxygen in the unpressurized cabin.

Trade-offs

• Experimental Amateur-Built, not type-certificated. Each airframe is individually certificated and reflects its builder’s work; there is no factory POH, and insurance, financing, and resale all reflect the experimental category.
• Unpressurized cabin. High-altitude legs require supplemental oxygen; buyers wanting a low cabin altitude step up to the pressurized Lancair IV-P.
• High wing loading and a demanding speed envelope. A slick airframe with a high sink rate on power reduction; the NTSB has noted a high accident share across the Lancair line, and recurrent type-specific training is strongly advised.
• TSIO-550 ownership. The twin-turbocharged Continental carries a published TBO around 1,600 to 1,800 hours and the maintenance discipline of a high-output turbocharged piston; overhaul and upkeep are owner-borne with no factory program.

See Also

• Lancair IV-P – the pressurized development on the same airframe and engine. Compare
• Lancair PropJet IV – the turbine-powered development of the same airframe. Compare
• Lancair Evolution – Lancair’s larger, later clean-sheet pressurized kit. Compare
• Lancair Columbia 400 – the certified, unpressurized Lancair-designed production single. Compare