Purebred from a Distinguished Lineage.

The Tiger owes many of its most innovative design features to its heritage—a whole family of planes known for the ultimate in responsive, exhilarating flight and rock-solid construction. And since it was the designers of Grumman who brought the Tiger to life, it shares many design principles with its distant cousins, the Grumman naval fighters, including the famous F-14 Tomcat. From the rivetless bonded aluminum to the honeycomb structure to the sliding canopy, every Tiger draws on over four decades of the best in aircraft design and engineering.

The Tiger’s forebear, the AA-1 Yankee, was itself the descendant of a plane known as the BD-1. The BD-1 was a folding wing prototype designed in 1962 which never entered production. The AA-1 Yankee was produced from 1969 to 1971 by American Aviation, which also developed the AA-1A Trainer as the Yankee’s successor, and built the planes until 1972. Both planes were two-seaters noted for their exceptionally quick handling.

Grumman American began producing enhanced versions of the AA-1 planes in 1972. The new planes were built under an amended type certificate, AA-lB, with 60 pounds more gross weight and two variations available. The first was known as the Trainer, and featured a climb prop for basic flight school training. A “sport version” was known as the TR-2 and came equipped with a cruise prop for a higher top speed.

While they were producing the AA-1B, the engineers at Grumman also went to work on the basic design, and developed more substantial enhancements to what was proving to be a very promising and popular design. They stretched the body to include two more seats and enlarged the engine from 108 hp to 150 hp. The new AA-5 Traveler, as the plane was designated, cruised at 122 knots and had a 430-nm range.

In 1975 Grumman made further changes to the AA-5 design, and the AA-5B Tiger was born. A new 180 hp engine was added, increasing the cruise speed to 143 knots. The useful load also increased, and a second optional fuel tank was added. The new plane was an instant success, featuring all of the quick handling and speed of its ancestors with the size and space to make it a practical plane for a small family or a couple of vacationers.

Along with the Tiger, Grumman produced another variation on the AA-1 design, and introduced the AA-1B T-Cat and the AA-1C Lynx in 1977. Both planes had modified tails and larger engines than the original Yankees. The T-Cat was offered as a Trainer and the Lynx was offered as a “sport” version. Grumman also introduced a twin-engine plane known as the Cougar, which was manufactured from 1978-79.

Gulfstream American, which produced Tigers in the late 1970’s, introduced the AA-5A Cheetah, which featured a modified tail, a 150 hp engine, and a modified Tiger cowl to fit the lower-horsepower engine.

When American General began producing the Tiger in 1990, they updated the design enough to require a different type certificate, and the AG-5B Tiger became the new standard bearer. Today’s new Tigers from Tiger Aircraft carry the same designation, with the added value of totally redesigned panels and interiors.