Starr Bumble Bee II
The Starr Bumble Bee II is an experimental aircraft designed and built specifically to acquire the title of "The World’s Smallest Airplane".
Design and development
The Bumble Bee II was designed and built by Robert H. Starr in Phoenix, Arizona with the intent of breaking the record for the world's smallest biplane. Before building the Bumble Bee II, Starr had been deeply involved with the development of previous aircraft holding the title of "world's smallest airplane". His own plane, the Bumble Bee I, had lost the record to an aircraft called the Stits DS-1 Baby Bird, until the Bumble Bee II flew and regained the Guinness record.The design of the Bumble Bee II was similar to Starr's original Bumble Bee I. Both aircraft were biplanes with negative staggered, cantilevered wings and conventional landing gear. However, the Bumble Bee II was smaller and lighter with a fuselage constructed of welded steel tubing covered by sheet metal, and wings covered in aircraft plywood. The power plant was a Continental C85 four-cylinder air-cooled horizontally opposed cylinder engine that produced. The upper wings had flaps while the lower wings had ailerons. All wing air-frame structures were equipped with tip plates to enhance the lift coefficient. The airplane had a small cockpit with the rudder pedals located under the engine compartment toward the front of the cowling.