Sharp Nemesis
| Sharp DR90 Nemesis | |
|---|---|
| Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center | |
| Role | Racing aircraft |
| Manufacturer | Sharp Air Racing |
| Designer | Jon Sharp |
| First flight | 1991 |
| Status | On display at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center |
| Variants | Sharp Nemesis NXT |
The Sharp DR 90 Nemesis is a Formula One racing aircraft designed by Jon Sharp and built at the Mojave Airport by the Nemesis Air Racing Team. The aircraft is powered by a modified Continental O-200 piston engine.
The Nemesis originated as an attempt by Jon Sharp to build a Shoestring racer, with composite skins over a steel frame. Along the way, Dan Bond convinced him to use an airfoil with extensive laminar flow and finally, Steve Ericson helped Jon design a sleeker, all composite airframe. All that remains of the original “plastic Shoestring” is the horizontal tail. The steel space frame was sold to Dan Gilbert, who built on it his Shadow Formula One air racer. Although Shadow looks much like Nemesis it is fabricated differently and has a completely different wing.
The success of the Nemesis aircraft led Jon Sharp to design a follow-on type, the Nemesis NXT.