By Rick Hayes, EAA Lifetime 262014
This piece originally ran in the August 2025 issue of EAA Sport Aviation magazine.
John Moody is widely regarded as the “father of modern ultralight aviation” and has a significant connection with EAA. He didn’t intend to be the father of an industry, nor did he imagine himself as one of the last pioneers in aviation. He was a hang glider pilot frustrated by the flat terrain and nonexistent winds around Wisconsin.
John taught himself to fly in an Icarus II hang glider that he built in the mid-1970s. It wasn’t long before he realized that the local topography was all wrong for his sport. Hang gliders need big hills and steady winds so their pilots can take off, climb, and soar. The closest things to big hills with steady winds around him were the cliffs along Lake Michigan.
So John got creative. He mounted a two-cycle, 12.5-hp McCulloch engine fitted with a small propeller to the back of his Icarus II. This allowed him to take off from level ground and climb for about 30 minutes, then turn the engine off and soar. And that’s exactly what he did for the first time on March 15, 1975.
That first flight, from the frozen surface of Long Lake in Wisconsin, ultimately made John the father of ultralight aviation. He was the first person to develop a powered hang glider that could be launched from flat terrain, without benefit of wind, with the pilot running along with it until it became airborne.
John’s first ultralight weighed about 90 pounds. He made his takeoffs by firing up that little MAC 101 engine, picking up the whole airplane, and then running like crazy for a dozen or so steps. He’d climb slowly to about 1,000 feet, cruise along at 26 miles per hour, and then glide back down to a stand-up landing.
John wrote about his new machine in the February 1976 issue of EAA Sport Aviation in a piece called “Back Yard Aviation” and started a sensation. That summer, he trailered the ultralight to EAA Oshkosh and demonstrated it to crowds at the fly-in. A milestone in the history of aviation was made as John became the father of the modern ultralight movement with his revolutionary powered hang glider, the Icarus II.
When John founded Ultralight Flying Machines of Wisconsin, his hobby turned into a business. Suddenly, he was an aircraft manufacturer. Many other companies also entered the business, and the ultralight hobby and industry had begun.
John’s contribution to aviation is now universally known as the ultralight. His demonstrations and the subsequent rise in ultralight popularity directly led to the creation of FAR Part 103, the regulations governing ultralight aircraft operations. The Federal Aviation Administration decided that these aircraft did not need to be registered and their pilots did not need pilot certificates. Progress was rapid and the evolution began toward the ultralights we have today.
In 1999, John was inducted into the EAA Ultralight Hall of Fame, recognizing his pivotal role in pioneering ultralight aviation. John recently donated his Icarus II, the first powered hang glider that flew at Oshkosh, to EAA.
Timm Bogenhagan, the ultralight and lightplane community manager and member programs specialist for EAA, contacted me and told me John made this donation, and his ultralight needed to be moved from John’s home in Brandon, Florida, to the EAA Aviation Museum in Wisconsin for restoration. Timm wanted to know if I could help with the relocation. I told Timm Michigan Ultralight Association (MULA) members Bill Darnell and I would have trailers at the SUN ’n FUN Aerospace Expo near John’s home, and we would be able to bring this part of aviation history back to Oshkosh for EAA.
MULA members Bill Darnell and Don Niles met with John and his wife and took delivery of the Icarus II for EAA at John’s home.
During SUN ’n FUN 2025, John was able to hang out during MULA’s annual club barbecue and share stories about his flying activities.
“I found John to be highly energetic, full of information, and just a great person to visit with,” Don said.
Bill, a 2024 EAA award winner for his blue and white checkered Quicksilver MX, said, “I had the pleasure and indeed honor to meet the father of ultralight aviation, John Moody, at his home in central Florida. I was there with fellow Michigan ultralight association flying club member Don Niles and my good friend Jim Rohrbacher to pick up John’s history-making Icarus II powered hang glider, which he has graciously donated to the EAA for future generations of aviation enthusiasts to view in the museum in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. The plane is a testament to John’s engineering skills and craftsmanship. It is a simple yet ingenious combination of lightweight materials and good old-fashioned resourcefulness.
“A very humble soft-spoken man, John told us he never had the money it takes to build and maintain a general aviation aircraft, so he built the best aircraft he could afford. I also had the opportunity to see John fly his current ultralight on two occasions at SUN ’n FUN 2025. He is not only a skilled designer and fabricator but also a first-rate pilot — at 82 years young. John Moody is an inspiration to me and my fellow club members. Anyone who has flown an ultralight aircraft owes him a tip of the hat and an acknowledgement of his importance to our sport. Thank you, John.”
Another MULA member, Todd Baker, remembered watching John fly his Icarus off the Lake Michigan sand dunes in Frankfort, Michigan.
“I had my Icarus V completed and attempted to fly it on a calm day,” Todd said. “I found I could not run fast enough to lift off. Not wanting to carry it to the top of the dune each attempt, it sat idle until I saw John Moody fly at Frankfort’s Alberta dunes. I watched him try and foot launch from the sandy beach without success. He said he needed to change the prop. I didn’t quite believe him until the next day. He had gone back to the airport about a mile inland and, with a new prop, was able to launch, fly over the dunes along Lake Michigan, and safely return to the airport. I’ll never forget seeing the advertisement under his wings spelling out Ned’s Yummy Pizza slowly fly by. At that point in time, I knew what to do with my Icarus V. My dad, being the homebuilder he was, helped me build up a powerplant and landing gear. We were soon airborne, too.”
EAA’s plan is to have the first ultralight that was flown at Oshkosh in 1976 restored for the 50th anniversary of its flight during EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2026. John’s ultralight will then be displayed in the EAA museum.
Coincidentally, 2026 will also be the 40th anniversary of MULA. With all of the knowledge and skills the MULA club members have, I asked Timm if he would consider letting MULA do the restoration. Timm agreed. I had the pleasure of talking on the phone with John about his Icarus II and making arrangements to pick it up during SUN ’n FUN. John told me was a builder by necessity; he needed something to fly that was not available at the time.
John’s Icarus II is now in a hangar rented by MULA members from EAA Chapter 77 in Flushing, Michigan. Don and I unpacked and inventoried the components of this historic aircraft. Yes, it was a registered aircraft, N65131, before Part 103 rules. It was amazing how light and flimsy the wing panels seemed to be. Along with the airframe, we received all the drawings and prints for both the airframe and powerplant package. John also sent the original fabric used for making dresses. It’s amazing that the direct-drive McCulloch MAC-101 go-kart engine and tiny prop would get anything into the air.
It is a great honor for the Michigan Ultralight Association to be involved in working with John and EAA in the restoration of this historic part of aviation.
Rick Hayes, EAA Lifetime 262014, is a member of the EAA Ultralight & Light-Sport Aircraft Council, a longtime member of MULA, tech counselor for EAA Chapter 77, private pilot, and light-sport CFI, and has built and restored many experimental, special light-sport aircraft, experimental light-sport aircraft, and ultralight aircraft. He is also the owner of Hayes Aero LLC and a co-owner of Ultra-Prop LLC with his wife, Linda, and daughter and son in-law, Jennifer and Montgomery Morgan.