Design work began in late 1978, with a 1/8th scale flying model being built to verify aspects of the design.[3]
The Chrysalis was a biplane of conventional configuration, fitted with a tractor propeller. The biplane's wire-braced wings were unstaggered, and the outboard panels of the lower wing were set with a 6° dihedral. The fuselage was of the pod-and-boom type. The aircraft had a primary structure of aluminum tubing, and a secondary structure made of styrofoam, balsa, and carbon fibre.[1] The entire aircraft was covered in transparent Mylar film. The undercarriage had a single, castoring, monowheel.[1] Lateral control was achieved by wing warping, with directional and pitch control being achieved by the all-flying tailfin and tailplane.[1]
Construction of the aircraft took 91 days, and involved 20 people and 3,500 hours of work.[2] It first flew on June 5, 1979, at Hanscom Field airport in Bedford, Massachusetts with designer Harold Youngren piloting the craft.[3] Between then and its dismantling in September, the Chrysalis made a total of 345 flights, with 44 different pilots.[1]
The Chrysalis was notable for being the first aircraft to use a 'minimum induced loss' propeller, the design of which was based on the work of Professor Eugene Larrabee.[4] The MIT team also built the propeller used by the MacCready Gossamer Albatross.[2]
