The Aero Commander 100, various models of which were known as the Darter Commander and Lark Commander was a US light aircraft produced in the 1960s. It was a high-wing monoplane of conventional design, equipped with fixed tricycle undercarriage.
The aircraft was originally designed by Volaircraft, first flying in 1960. The firm marketed the original three-seat version as the Volaire 1035 and a four-seat version with a more powerful engine as the Volaire 1050 before North American Rockwell purchased all rights to the design on July 121965 for production by its Aero Commander division. Production of the Darter Commander version continued until 1969 and of the revised Lark Commander until 1971 (by which time, Rockwell had dropped the Aero Commander brand name).
Finding the light aircraft market too competitive for its liking, Rockwell sold the rights to all versions of the aircraft to Phoenix Aircraft in 1971, but this company never actually put it into production.
Variants
Volaircraft
Model 10 - prototypes
Volaire 1035 - three-seat production version powered by Lycoming O-290
Volaire 1050 - four-seat production version powered by Lycoming O-320
Aero Commander/Rockwell
Aero Commander 100 - renamed Volaire 1050
Aero Commander 100A - renamed Volaire 1035
Darter Commander - 100 with revised windows and other minor modifications
Lark Commander - revised aerodynamics and Lycoming O-360 engine.
The Rockwell AeroCommander (AC-500S) is a versatile and stable high-winged twin piston-engine aircraft that is suitable for a variety of missions.
NOAA's two aerocommanders are utilized primarily as aerial survey platforms for visual verification of aeronautical charts, high-resolution aerial photography, and snow water equivalent and soil moisture content measurements.
An AC-500S AeroCommander aircraft is used by the National Operational Hydrologic Remote Sensing Center (NOHRSC) to conduct aerial snow survey operations in the snow-affected regions of the United States and Canada.
AeroCommander developed the high wing four seat 100 series in an effort to expand its product range.
AeroCommander only made a small number of changes before the 1050 was placed into production as the Commander100 (the 1035 was renamed the 100A) in the second half of 1965.
The name AeroCommander disappeared when the Division was renamed the General Aviation Division on September 9 1969.
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