*** PRESS RELEASE
January 15, 2008
C-LVL TACTICAL ORGANIC AIRBORNE DEMONSTRATOR (TOAD) : A SMALL, RUGGED, LOW COST, EMBEDDED AIRBORNE PARTNER
La Massana, Andorra. --- C-LVL, is starting the development of a manned low cost, rugged aerial observation platform. The TOAD (Tactical Organic Aerial Demonstrator) is based on a proven ultralight autogyro airframe with a fully enclosed cabin ruggedized to handle the rigors of hard use.The aim of the project is to provide an air asset to people priced out of the current offering and to users looking for a tough system that can be maintained in the field by non specialized mechanics.
"We want to enable the end user to really own their aircraft by letting them fly it" says Laurent Pladůs, President and founder of C-LVL. The license to operate such an ultralight can be obtained after as little as 20 hours of flight instruction. A pilot can be certified to fly passengers after a total of 50 flight hours.
"We envisioned humanitarian aid workers flying from village to village in disaster stricken zones without roads" adds Laurent Pladůs.
The low cost of ownership (less than 200K €) and low cost of operation (about 40 € per hour) will broaden the possible uses of air assets.
The TOAD is small enough to be transported in the back of a pickup truck alongside the unit it is supporting until needed. In a few moments it can be readied for takeoff as it only requires 50 to 100 meters of flat terrain. Landing can be almost vertical, so a road, a field or even a beach are makeshift airfields. The large cabin can transport up to 3 people or up to 700 pounds of payload and can accommodate a stretcher if needed.
C-LVL is currently looking for funding in order to complete the engineering, start manufacturing its exclusive model and finalize testing of the TOAD.
For more information, visit http://www.c-lvl.com or contact C-LVL at : toad@c-lvl.com
