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right|thumb|Fly Baby
thumb|right|A Bowers Bi-Baby, this is the Fly Baby with the upper wing installed
thumb|right|A Bowers Bi-Baby, front view
The Bowers Fly Baby is a homebuilt, single-seat, open-cockpit, wood and fabric low-wing monoplane that was designed by famed United States aircraft designer and Boeing historian, Peter M. Bowers.
Development
The prototype Fly Baby first flew in 1962, becoming the winner of the Experimental Aircraft Association's 1962 design competition.
Variants include a biplane version called the Bowers Bi-Baby or Fly Baby 1-B,
Design
To win the 1962 Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) Design Contest, Bowers designed the small plane to meet EAA's criteria for a low-cost, folding-wing airplane that was easy to build and fly, and could be towed or trailered.
While the instrumentation installed is up to the builder, most Fly Babys are equipped for visual flight rules (VFR) only. An electrical system is optional; many Fly Baby owners hand-prop the engine for starting, and use a handheld radio.
Some of the components used, such as the fuel tank and engine, were designed to be taken from the Piper Cub, which were cheap and plentiful in 1962. Even today, the total cost of construction can be under US$10,000.
Variants
;Bowers Bi-Baby
:A Fly Baby can be converted to a biplane Bi-Baby in less than one hour by adding the struts and upper wing to the existing aircraft (if the fittings were built in) or it can be built as a biplane version from the start. or as a basic ultra-light aeroplane. It may be flown with an Ultra-light Pilot Permit or higher aeroplane licence.