Piel Diamant

The Piel CP.60 Diamant is a single-engine light aircraft designed in France in the 1960s and marketed for home building.[1]

CP.60 Diamant
Piel C.P. 605 Diamant
Role civil utility aircraft
National origin France
Manufacturer Homebuilt
Designer Claude Piel

Design and development

The Diamant is a conventional, low-wing cantilever monoplane and essentially an enlarged version of Piel's successful Emeraude designed to accommodate more passengers.[1][2] This extra capacity is provided by a redesigned fuselage which is higher in the rear section and longer overall.[3] While the Emeraude has only two seats, side-by-side, the Diamant has an extra bench seat at the rear of the cabin to seat one or two more people.[2] The wingspan is also greater than that of the Emeraude, allowing for a greater maximum take-off weight.[3] The 110 page set of plans included modifications for retractable gear, tricycle gear, and wing mounted fuel tanks.[4]

As with the Emeraude, Piel obtained type certification for the Diamant, allowing it to be manufactured on a commercial basis.[2] However, unlike the Emeraude, this did not actually transpire, and the Diamant was only ever built as a homebuilt.[5]

By the late 1970s, the original versions of the Diamant were no longer offered and had been supplanted by the Super Diamant, designed for more powerful engines and featuring revised tail surfaces.[2]

Variants
  • CP.60 Diamant - prototype with 90 hp (67 kW) Continental engine.[6]
  • CP.601 Diamant - version with 100 hp (75 kW) Continental engine.[6]
  • CP.602 Diamant - version with 115 hp (86 kW) Potez engine.[6]
  • CP.603 Diamant - version with 115 hp Lycoming engine
  • CP.604 Super Diamant - version with 145 horsepower (108 kW) Continental engine.[6]
  • CP.605 Super Diamant - 4 seat version with 150 kW (201 hp) Lycoming O-320-E2A engine.[7]
  • CP.605B Super Diamant - CP.605 with retractable tricycle landing gear.[7]
  • CP.606 Super Diamant - version with 140 hp Lycoming engine
  • CP.607 Super Diamant - version with 130 hp Continental engine
  • CP.608 Super Diamant - version with 180 hp Lycoming engine
  • CP.615 Super Diamant - version with 160 hp engine

Specifications (CP.605B)

Data from Jane's All the World's Aircraft 1977–78, p.496

General characteristics

  • Crew: One pilot
  • Capacity: 2-3 passengers
  • Length: 7.00 m (23 ft 0 in)
  • Wingspan: 9.20 m (30 ft 2 in)
  • Height: 2.00 m (6 ft 7 in)
  • Wing area: 13.3 m2 (143 sq ft)
  • Empty weight: 520 kg (1,146 lb)
  • Gross weight: 850 kg (1,873 lb)
  • Powerplant: 1 × Lycoming O-320_E2A , 112 kW (150 hp)

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 260 km/h (160 mph, 140 kn)
  • Range: 1,150 km (710 mi, 620 nmi)
  • Service ceiling: 5,000 m (16,400 ft)
  • Rate of climb: 5.5 m/s (1,080 ft/min)

Notes
  1. Taylor 1989, p.725
  2. Jane's All the World's Aircraft 1977–78, p.495
  3. Jane's All the World's Aircraft 1977–78, p.495–96
  4. Air Progress Sport Aircraft: 74. Winter 1969. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  5. Simpson 1995, p.283
  6. Taylor 1967, p. 51
  7. Taylor 1976, p. 470

References
  • Jane's All the World's Aircraft 1977–78. London: Jane's Publishing.
  • Simpson, R. W. (1995). Airlife's General Aviation. Shrewsbury: Airlife Publishing.
  • Taylor, John W. R. (1967). Jane's All the World's Aircraft 1967–68. London: Sampson Low, Marston & Company, Ltd.
  • Taylor, John W. R., ed. (1976). Jane's All the World's Aircraft 1976–77. London: Jane's Yearbooks. ISBN 0-354-00538-3.
  • Taylor, Michael J. H. (1989). Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation. London: Studio Editions.
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