WITTMAN / GENERAL AVIATION

Wittman Tailwind W8

The earlier Tailwind branch, represented by Lionheart with a smaller engine and basic panel.

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Wing arrangementHigh wing
ConstructionSteel tube, wood and fabric
Prototype year1953
Simulated W8 panelBasic instruments
Simulator ecosystemsMSFS
YOUR AIRCRAFT COMPANION

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Aircraft background

Aircraft and simulator background

Wittman's Tailwind line uses a compact high-wing layout with steel tube, wood and fabric construction. The original 1953 prototype used a Continental C-90, and EAA published its plans.

Wittman Tailwind W8

Experimental Aircraft Association · Read more ↗
Aircraft systems

The represented W8

Lionheart's collection separates the smaller-engine, basic-panel W8 from its W10. Its camping, seat, panel-finish and paint options change the product's presentation.

Wittman Tailwind W8

secure.simmarket.com · Read more ↗
THE AIRCRAFT

Meet Wittman Tailwind W8

Wittman's Tailwind line uses a compact high-wing layout with steel tube, wood and fabric construction. The original 1953 prototype used a Continental C-90, and EAA published its plans.

Lionheart's W8 rendition has a smaller engine and basic panel compared with its six-cylinder, glass-panel W10. The seller describes both as custom dream builds.

FAMILY, MODELS & VARIANTS

Wittman Tailwind W8

Wittman → · Explore the family →

Aircraft type designators

No type designator selected for this reference.

HOW IT CAME TO BE

History & design

A racer turns to cross-country travel

Steve Wittman brought his racing experience to a different problem in the early 1950s: a small aeroplane for efficient cross-country flying. The Tailwind was supplied as plans and could be built with ordinary workshop tools, rather than being assembled from a modern pre-manufactured kit. Its compact cabin and fixed landing gear were part of that practical approach.

EAA's anniversary account records the W-8C's passenger-carrying approval in December 1953. The line later included the tricycle-gear W-9 and the somewhat larger W-10 with tapered wings. Those later developments matter when comparing Tailwind specifications: an individual W-10's engine, fuel load or cruise performance does not define the original W-8.

Experimental Aircraft Association · Wittman Tailwind Celebrates Platinum Anniversary ↗

UNDER THE SKIN

Systems & details

A homebuilt structure with room for variation

EAA classifies the Tailwind as a high-wing design using steel tube, wood and fabric. Its builder resources also list alternative wing and composite-part suppliers. That plans-built background makes the individual aircraft configuration important: construction choices and fitted equipment can differ even when the aircraft carry the same family name.

Experimental Aircraft Association · Wittman Tailwind ↗
VIRTUAL VERSIONS

In your simulator

Systems, equipment and documentation for each developer’s aircraft.

MSFS 2020 · MSFS 2024

Lionheart Creations Wittman Tailwind W8

Lionheart Creations · Released

MSFS 2020 · MSFS 2024Third-party add-on

Aircraft

The represented W8

Lionheart's collection separates the smaller-engine, basic-panel W8 from its W10. Its camping, seat, panel-finish and paint options change the product's presentation.

secure.simmarket.com · Wittman Tailwind W8 — product and aircraft reference ↗

Product description, configuration and simulator editions

GO TO THE SOURCE

Manuals & resources

Find your next read

Choose a topic for a short introduction and a link to the original source. Simulator references identify the developer and edition they cover.

Aircraft background

Wittman TailwindWittman Tailwind W8

High Wing — Steel Tube, Wood, Fabric; W8/W10 article index

Experimental Aircraft Association · Read the source ↗

Aircraft history

Steve WittmanWittman Tailwind W8

1953 Tailwind prototype and EAA plan publication

EAA Chapter 252 · Read the source ↗

Developer documentation

Wittman Tailwind W8 — product and aircraft referenceWittman Tailwind W8

Product description, configuration and simulator editions

secure.simmarket.com · Read the source ↗

Read the original documentation from the people who created it. Manuals open on their publisher’s website.

Aircraft background

↗Wittman TailwindExperimental Aircraft Association · High Wing — Steel Tube, Wood, Fabric; W8/W10 article index

Aircraft history

↗Steve WittmanEAA Chapter 252 · 1953 Tailwind prototype and EAA plan publication

Developer documentation

↗Wittman Tailwind W8 — product and aircraft referencesecure.simmarket.com · Product description, configuration and simulator editions

Aircraft documentation

↗Wittman Tailwind Celebrates Platinum AnniversaryExperimental Aircraft Association
AIRCRAFT AND FEEL

Built-in force-feedback profiles

Read the documentary basis, editable starting settings and remaining questions for the aircraft you fly. Each explanation refers to the exact profile revision shown.

Catalogue programme-20261011-v3 · 2 profile choices

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