05/15/2013. Remarks by Walter van Tilborg: "The all-composite Silhouette was a design of Jim Kern and his son Rick and was developed by his Task Research, Ltd. The type was intended for amateur construction and from 1985 onwards was available in kit form from the Task subsidiary Silhouette Aircraft. Inc (40+ kits were sold). Although reportedly there was no direct involvement by Rutan or one of his companies, the Silhouette used the basic fuselage of the Rutan Solitaire motor glider for which Task Research had been contracted to build fuselages for Rutan Aircraft Factory.

TR-60 Silhouette was the initial designation used by Task for the prototypes. The first aircraft had a 47 hp Rotax 447 engine, a fixed tricycle type landing gear and it made the first flight on July 3, 1984, registered as N84TR. A second prototype featured a slightly wider cockpit and fuselage and used a Mazda rotary engine and had a modified air intake.

The first TR-60 was later modified to represent the SA-60 Silhouette I model, the designation used by Silhouette Aircraft, Inc for the variant offered, in kit form, for amateur construction with a 47 hp Rotax 447 engine as recommended engine. The Silhouette I was available with optional tail wheel landing gear detachable wing tip extensions. The original TR-60 prototype was later modified to represent this variant.

In 1989 marketing rights for the Silhouette I were sold to Lunds Tekniske (ArneLund) in Norway, but only very few aircraft were completed, although the type was still being offered in 1998. One Silhouette was built in South Africa by P.J. How, fitted with a Volkswagen 2000 Type 4 engine; other examples were built in Norway and Zambia.

At least one Silhouette received an 150 hp Lycoming O-320 and another one was completed with a 65 hp VW1834. The Harrison Skyblazer (qv) was a derivative of the Silhouette. The original prototype is preserved at the Museum of Flight in Seattle, Washington. The pictured aircraft was built by Capetown Builders Inc. of Cape Canaveral, Florida."