The CallAir Model A is a light aircraft from the US manufacturer CallAir Inc., which was developed in the early 1940s and whose agricultural aircraft variant was built until 1984. Reuel T. Call, an aviation enthusiast rancher and shipper from Wyoming , purchased a 1933 open- cockpit Kinner Sportster , which he transferred from the Glendale factory in the middle of winter. He was so enthusiastic about the machine's performance in the high mountains that in 1937 he and his brothers decided to design their own machine, the Call-Air, based on the Sportster. The first version of the Model A used an 80 hp Continental A-80 for its first flight in the winter of 1940 and was intended for use by ranchers and farmers in high-altitude, mountainous areas. CallAir's factory airfield was at an altitude of 1,900 m. In July 1941, the prototype received a more powerful Lycoming engine with 100 hp. Series production was supposed to begin in 1942, but could not begin because the USA entered the war and the associated cessation of civil aircraft construction. The Call family waited until 1946 to introduce the improved A-2 variant with a 125 hp engine, which quickly became a sales success in the northwestern United States. Since the materials for construction were difficult to obtain, Call bought the rights to the Interstate Cadet primarily because of the materials still available at Interstate. In 1947, the A-3 version received its type certification with a 125 hp Continental engine, followed by the A-4 with a 135 hp engine . With the A-5 and A-6, agricultural aircraft variants of the model were created for the first time. In total, CallAir's production of the Model A amounted to 140 series units in addition to the prototype. Divided into the variants, these were: 4 A-1, 13 A-2, 15 A-3, 30 A-4, 45 A-5, 19 A-6, 3 A-7. Another 11 copies have no variant assignment. In 1962, Intermountain Manufacturing Co. (IMCO) purchased CallAir at a public auction. IMCO developed the IMCO CallAir A-9 , a modified variant of the A-5 and A-6, which was delivered at a rate of one per week from March 1963. The biggest change compared to the original design was the relocation of the spray container (hopper) between the engine and cockpit for safety reasons. IMCO produced 78 A-9s. IMCO was taken over by Rockwell Standard 's Aero Commander division in 1966 , which also received the production rights for the A-9. Aero Commander marketed the A-9 as the Quail Commander . Since 1965, Aero Commander also produced the Aero Commander Ag Commander , referred to as Aero Commander Thrush Commander from 1967 , so confusion can arise here. In 1967, Rockwell-Standard merged with North American Aviation . On April 23, 1971, North American Rockwell (NAR) announced that the newly formed Aeronautica Agricola Mexicana SA (AAMSA), in which NAR held a 30% interest, would acquire the production rights, tools and materials for the Sparrow Commander and the Quail Commander bought. At AAMSA, the further developed IMCO CallAir A-9 continued to be built as the AAMSA A9B-M Quail until 1984. Versions A prototype 80 hp Continental A-80, first flight in 1940 A-1 Four-cylinder Lycoming O-235-A or -B (100 hp), 4 examples, type certificate ATC #758 on July 26, 1944 A-2 Four-cylinder Lycoming O-290-A (125 hp), type certificate July 31, 1946 A-3 Six-cylinder Continental C-125-2 (125 hp), type certificate November 6, 1947 A-4 Four-cylinder Lycoming O-320-A2A (150 hp), first flight December 14, 1954 A-5 Agricultural aircraft variant with 150 HP, 2 people on tandem seats on the left side, spray container on the right in the fuselage A-6 Agricultural aircraft variant with 180 hp, first flight December 18, 1957, like A-5 but larger fuel capacity A-7 Similar to A-5, but powered by a Continental W670-240 radial engine . An example converted from A-6 No information is available about a possible version A-8 A-9 Built by IMCO, for further development see AAMSA A9B-M Quail
