what is it?
The Buhl LA-1 Bull Pup was a light sports airplane developed in the United States in 1930. It was a mid-wing wire-braced monoplane with fixed tailskid undercarriage and an open cockpit for the pilot. Buhl developed the Bull Pup as a cheap aircraft through which the company hoped to remain in business as the onset of the Great Depression was felt.
How to recognise it: 1 piston engine with propeller · 9.1 m wingspan
base stats
Bars compare against all aircraft: 3,500 km/h, 20,000 km, 850 seats; size and number built on a log scale up to 640 t (An-225) and 45,000 built (Cessna 172).
fun facts
- First flew 96 years ago, in 1930.
- Wingspan of 9.1 m: about 2 cars parked nose to tail.
piston: A car-like piston engine turning a propeller: simple and cheap, the classic small plane.
spec sheet
- first flight
- 1930
- number built
- 100
- role
- sportsplane
- makers
- Buhl Aircraft Company
- engines
- 1× Szekely SR-3
- crew
- 1
- length
- 5.8 m
- wingspan
- 9.1 m
- height
- 2 m
- max take-off weight
- 386 kg
- top speed
- 158 km/h
- cruise speed
- 126 km/h
- range
- —
- ceiling
- 4,267 m
Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.
Sources: Wikidata Q4986311, Wikipedia: Buhl Bull Pup (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-24.