TrailThis is a fantastic and great fun all-metal lightweight 2-seat taildragger, stable and easy to fly, and great for grass strip flying. It has folding wings so can be economically stored if required.

Airframe and engine hours: 367 (increasing due to use).

LAA permit expires May 2026. In my ownership it has had new tyres and tubes, and recently had a thorough annual/permit inspection during which the mandatory lifed 200-hour wing bolts were replaced and signed off (another 190 hours to go).

In excellent mechanical order, and good cosmetic condition.

The Sauer S2400UL engine is simple, reliable and inexpensive to maintain (based on a VW engine).

Basic analogue panel including a Funkwerk ATR833 LCD radio (8.33 kHz spacing), Funkwerk TRT800H transponder (Mode S), MGL Avionics RPM gauge and engine monitor, plus traditional analogue instruments for ASI, VSI, altimeter, turn and slip, and engine gauges. Electric carb heat.

Empty weight 310 kg, maximum weight 520 kg, so a usable load of 210 kg. Total fuel circa 60 litres (100LL avgas, UL91 or mogas). It has the Hercules climb prop (62x38) and cruises at 80 kts+.

Notably it has a low seat and a headroom modification so it is no problem for a tall pilot in the front (I am 6 3 tall). The seats are adjustable so it can accommodate pilots of any size.

I have owned the aircraft since June 2024. The reason for sale is that I currently have two aircraft, and I would like to consolidate onto one I can only fly one at a time!

Always hangared in my ownership. The aircraft is currently based in Essex and can be seen by arrangement.

Please give me (David Joy) a call/text/WhatsApp on 07796 951800 if you would like to know more.

** UPDATE -- 28 AUGUST 2025 **

As the Groppo Trail is something of a niche aircraft, I wrote some extra notes which I thought I might as well add here. Mine has been on the market before, and it has the Sauer engine, which is a bit unusual on LAA aircraft, so these things might put you off. I don t think you d find anyone to argue with you if you said that the nominally 100 hp Sauer is outpaced by the 100 hp Rotax 912 ULS. But apart from their slightly optimistic performance figures, this doesn t mean that the Sauer engine is a bad engine at all. Sauer is a reputable engine manufacturer and Volkswagen-derived engines also have a good reputation in general.

What s good about the Groppo Trail?

It s really fun to fly, simple to maintain, lightweight, responsive little 2-seat aeroplane, has a wing fold if you need it, and extremely well-suited to farm strip flying. If you only fly Pipers or Cessnas off hard runways, it ll open a lot of other opportunities. It would be a good aircraft to get a tailwheel endorsement with an instructor on, as it s rugged and forgiving, or a good inexpensive aircraft to maintain a PPL on that is also a bit different from most other types of its size.

What s good about G-ROFS in particular?

It s a great example of the type. Of course I d say this, but I also think that anyone else who knows it or has flown it would say it (and I can put you in touch with some of them if you want!). It s been built well, it s in good condition, everything works, the engine runs well and starts first time, every time.

After a bit of tweaking this year, G-ROFS is now very well-balanced and flies straight and hands-off once trimmed. On a nice evening, when the wind dies down a bit, it is enormous fun to float over the Essex countryside, looking out of the window, dropping into farm strips, flying by the seat of your pants or you can advance the throttle and fly around at 90 kts if you want.

Who s being maintaining it?

It had been sitting for a while before I bought it, but it had a comprehensive permit done at purchase, and then in June this year a full service annual and permit by Richard Kimberley (https://richardkimberleyservices.co.uk/), including the all-important 200 flying hour lifed wing bolts. It has also had a minor engine service by Kevin Dilks and the tyres and tubes replaced at North Weald Flying Services in the last year, so several engineers have been through it with a fine-tooth comb in my ownership. I also have a C of A aircraft, so I prefer to seek professional advice to keep on top of maintenance rather than leaving things to chance.

It s never been sitting unused in my ownership; I fly whenever I can and not less often than every 2-3 weeks, weather permitting. I ve done 44 hours in a bit over a year.

What s wrong with it?

The short answer nothing s wrong with it! My circumstances have changed a bit since I bought it, and having two aircraft, splitting time between both has been harder work than I anticipated, so I d like to return to having one.

As for its history and why it was on the market for a while before, the previous owner unfortunately lost his medical, so it didn t fly for a bit and wasn t readily available for demo flights, and it was on sale over the winter which is not a typically busy period for very light aircraft sales. However, in my ownership, it s been looked after, stored in a dry hangar, and flown regularly, so this is no longer an issue.

What s the performance like?

With G-ROFS s engine and prop combination, I get a decent enough cruise speed (70 slow cruise, 80 normal cruise, 90 fast cruise) and at around 15 litres per hour you ll get three hours out of it with a bit of reserve which is enough for cross-country flights. Especially since you can refill with 100LL (as well as UL91 and mogas) so you can be pretty certain you ll be able to refill at or near your destination.

Being such a light aircraft, the runway length and climb performance are very variable depending on the weight (and, to a lesser degree, other factors such as temperature). I would say it s well-suited to a 400m+ strip. I currently operate it from a 600m grass strip, and that s ample, I only really need half of it. Climb rate is anywhere between 500 fpm and 800+ fpm depending on load.

I used to operate it from a 360m grass strip on a slight hill, and I took off uphill many times, but I will say that this was a little marginal I only ever flew solo from there. In contrast, landing might be its party piece ; a well-judged landing with full flap can be in less than 100m. So once you have mastered it, you won t have any trouble getting it into tight strips, you just need to make sure there s enough runway to get out of them!

What isn t to like about it?

Hmm, only little things and these are subjective and won t necessarily be an issue for other people.

The weight is a bit limited with a total load (pilot, passenger and fuel) of 210 kg. That said, I m 6 3 , and when I bought it, both I plus an instructor fitted fine with full fuel. Two medium-sized people would be fine.

The rear seat is a bit cramped. It might be an issue if you re planning on flying with a big person in the back, but it isn t at all if the big person is only in the front. The front seat has loads of room (I m 6 3 ) which is one of the main reasons I bought it, since very lightweight aircraft that can accommodate a tall person are few and far between.

Mine has fairly basic seats (low slung) but I have some cushions for it too, so in conjunction with the headroom mod, I have the advantage of lots of headroom while still being comfortable in flight.

It s not a speed demon, but that s not the purpose of the type. The engine well, that s something to think about, but the advantage of the Sauer is that it s simpler and cheaper and this is reflected in the acquisition cost.

Some of the cosmetics are not perfect (scratch on a rear window, some scuffs and very minor dents to the metal) but these are what you d expect on any aircraft of its age that s been flown regularly.

What if I decide I don t like the Sauer S2400UL?

The engine can be replaced, if desired, with a Rotax 912 ULS and in fact ISE Aviation, the UK Groppo agents, offer a service to do this. If you choose to do so, the value of the aircraft will increase by approximately the amount you spent on the upgrade, so it s potentially very cost-effective. Do ask Umberto at ISE about it; he is in the process of upgrading another Sauer Groppo at the moment.

How about the avionics?

As you can see from the photo, it has a pretty old-school panel, plus radio and transponder. I find it fine for what the aircraft does best (farm strip flying). The altimeter is slightly unusual, having a single needle, but you get used to it quickly. I also have a phone mount for SkyDemon and a Stratux for ADS-B in which I run off the cigarette lighter socket. It would be quite straightforward to fit a small EFIS of some kind if you wanted.

The battery is strong and the electrical system has no leaks I ve never had to charge the battery once in my ownership, even cold or in winter, and has enough oomph to start the engine first time every time.

Any other questions?

I probably forgot some, so if you re interested or enthusiastic about the type, please give me a call, or send me a text or WhatsApp, to chat about it (David, +44 (0)7796 951800).