Waco Aircraft Company Ymf (WACF)
ICAO WACF Light Piston

Waco Aircraft Company Ymf

Single Piston

The Waco YMF is a modern recreation of the classic 1930s open-cockpit biplane, built by the revived Waco Aircraft Company starting in 1986. While the original Waco biplanes were workhorses of barnstorming and early commercial aviation, today's YMF series are handcrafted luxury sport aircraft that faithfully reproduce the golden-age flying experience with modern materials and safety standards. Each aircraft is built to order in Battle Creek, Michigan, featuring traditional fabric-covered steel tube fuselages, wooden wing spars, and the distinctive radial engine, typically a seven-cylinder Jacobs R-755 producing 275 horsepower. The YMF's tandem open cockpits, generous wingspan, and docile handling make it a favorite for aerobatic training, scenic tours, and airshow demonstrations, offering pilots the rare opportunity to experience aviation as it was in the barnstorming era. With a cruise speed around 105 knots and a service ceiling near 14,000 feet, the YMF trades speed for character. This is an aircraft built for the joy of flying low and slow, feeling the wind and hearing the radial's unmistakable rumble. The type remains in limited production, with each airframe representing months of skilled craftsmanship and commanding prices well into six figures. SkyMeter has tracked 81 flights across 28 airframes and 26 operators, with CLASSIC BARNSTORMERS LLC the largest observed operator.

✈
ACTIVE AIRFRAMES
28
last 7 days
🏢
OPERATORS
26
unique airlines
📊
FLIGHTS
81
tracked
⏱
AVG DURATION
23m
per flight
⚠
INCIDENT RATE
6.2%
5 flagged
ⓘ

Safety in context

The incident rate counts flights with ANY safety event detected by SkyMeter: go-arounds (a routine response, not a failure), unstable-approach gate flags (advisory thresholds), rejected takeoffs (the system working as designed), and runway events. It is NOT an accident rate or fatality rate. For accident statistics, refer to the NTSB Aviation Accident Database (USA) or the Aviation Safety Network. See methodology for what each event type measures.

Performance

Speed envelope & approach

Vref
55 kt
Vref range
—
Vmo
—
Mmo
—
Vne
163 kt
Vno
140 kt
Vs0 (landing)
46 kt
Vfe
87 kt
Approach category
—

Dimensions

Airframe geometry

Wingspan
—
Length
—
Tail height
—
Wheelbase
—
Gear width
—
Wake category
L

Weight & identification

Operating limits

MTOW
3,000 lb
MALW
—
Manufacturer model
YMF
FAA designator
—
Registered
—

Recent incidents

Flagged flights of WACF

20
10/10/2026
29m
△ Low approach-stability score
10/10/2026
22m
△ Low approach-stability score
10/3/2026
24m
△ Low approach-stability score
10/3/2026
27m
△ Low approach-stability score
10/2/2026
1h 2m
△ Low approach-stability score
9/29/2026
40m
△ Low approach-stability score
9/22/2026
46m
△ Low approach-stability score
9/20/2026
45m
△ Low approach-stability score
9/20/2026
27m
△ Low approach-stability score
9/20/2026
31m
△ Low approach-stability score

Recent flights

Real flights of WACF · airborne ≥ 20 min

30
10/12/2026
30m
No alerts
10/11/2026
26m
No alerts
10/11/2026
22m
No alerts
10/10/2026
46m
No alerts
10/10/2026
55m
No alerts
10/10/2026
27m
No alerts
10/10/2026
24m
No alerts
10/10/2026
54m
No alerts
10/10/2026
47m
No alerts
10/10/2026
36m
No alerts
10/10/2026
38m
No alerts
10/10/2026
29m
△ Low approach-stability score
10/10/2026
52m
No alerts
10/10/2026
28m
No alerts
10/10/2026
22m
△ Low approach-stability score
10/10/2026
41m
No alerts
10/10/2026
21m
No alerts
10/9/2026
29m
No alerts
10/9/2026
51m
No alerts
10/8/2026
31m
No alerts
10/8/2026
57m
No alerts
10/7/2026
35m
No alerts
10/7/2026
19m
No alerts
10/7/2026
37m
No alerts
10/7/2026
1h 9m
No alerts
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© SkyMeter · All flight data subject to ODbL attribution · Tracking window: 7 days (free tier)