Rans S-12XL Airaile
These figures describe a typical build. Each aircraft of this design was built by its owner, and the one you are looking at may differ.
The S-12XL Airaile is Rans' pusher two-seater: an open-sided tandem pod on tricycle gear under a 31 ft strut-braced wing, with the engine behind the cabin. With the 65 hp two-stroke Rotax 582 that most carry, Rans quotes 75 mph cruise, a 33 mph flapped stall, 250 ft of ground roll, 900 fpm and 3.1 hours on 18 gallons, with 500 lb useful on a 975 lb gross.
This is an ultralight-style aeroplane registered as an aircraft, and the ownership picture follows: a two-stroke engine that needs decarbonising, rubber replacement and a cautious owner, sailcloth and fabric that live outdoors badly, and a cruise speed that makes it a local aeroplane. The 912-engined examples are a different, heavier and more expensive machine with a 1,100 lb gross, and the one read was on amphibious floats, which is where much of the type's appeal lies. Because it is amateur-built or an early factory LSA depending on the example, the engine, wing covering and panel are whatever the builder or owner chose, so the individual aircraft's documents and condition inspection history are the record. The type is in production with parts available.
Variants of the Rans S-12 Airaile
- S-12XL Airaile · 184 active · this page
Also consider
TAILFAX SCORE
Among 1–2 seat pistons (321 models)
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What it is
| Seats | 2 |
|---|---|
| Landing gear | tricycle |
| Engines | — |
| Engine | Rotax 582 (503 and 912 UL/ULS also listed) |
| Horsepower | 65 hp |
| Fuel | — |
| Certification basis | amateur-built |
| Production start | — |
| Production end | — |
| Endorsements required | — |
Performance
| Cruise speed | 65 KTAS |
|---|---|
| Range | 202 nm |
| Service ceiling | 14,000 ft |
| Climb rate | 900 ft/min |
| Stall speed (Vso) | 29 KCAS |
| Takeoff over 50 ft | — |
| Landing over 50 ft | — |
Load and fuel
| Seats | 2 |
|---|---|
| Useful load | 500 lb |
| Full-fuel payload | — |
| Max takeoff weight | 975 lb |
| Empty weight | 475 lb |
| Usable fuel | — |
| Fuel burn at cruise | 5.8 gal/h |
Cost of ownership
| Price, low | $18,000 |
|---|---|
| Price, high | $49,900 |
| Prices as of | 2026 |
| Engine TBO | — |
| Overhaul cost, low | — |
| Overhaul cost, high | — |
The fleet and its record
| Registered, all time | 437 |
|---|---|
| Active fleet | 184 |
| Median year built | 1998 |
| NTSB events, last 10 years | 11 |
| Fatal events, last 10 years | 7 |
| Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years | 59.781 |
| Personal-flying events per 1,000 active | 38.042 |
| Ownership transfers, last 24 months | 48 |
| Transfers per 100 active | 26.093 |
| Airworthiness directives | 1 |
| Directives, last 5 years | 0 |
| Rate confidence | ok |
- Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 184 active.
- Personal-flying events per 1,000 active: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 184 active.
- Transfers per 100 active: per 100 active aircraft · base 184 active.
Peer scores6
| Peer class | Fixed wing single-engine, piston, 1 engine, 1-2 seats |
|---|---|
| Accident record | 4.8 of 101 |
| Severity | 0.2 of 102 |
| Access | 9.5 of 103 |
| Support | 7.7 of 104 |
| Liquidity | 7.8 of 105 |
| Overall (sum of the categories shown) | 30 out of 506 |
- Accident record: class median 36.69 · 321 models in class.
- Severity: class median 13.04.
- Access: class median 1,000.
- Support: class median 77.5.
- Liquidity: class median 20.
- Each of the five categories places the model within its peer class, from 0 (the worst of the class) to 10 (the best): a position among comparable models, not a grade. The overall score is the sum of the categories shown that are scored, out of 10 for each (50 when all five are); it is given only when at least 4 of the five are scored, and it can be set against another model's only when both are in the same peer class and scored on the same categories. When accident record and severity cannot be scored because the model has too few records, the other three give a partial score out of 30, labelled as such; it is never set against a full score.
Data as of: FAA registry Sep 28 · NTSB Oct 2 · ADs Oct 6 · scores Sep 30