An interview with Mike Patey describing the changes he made to his Wilga to create his Draco.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PqhI4MeCn1c
A series of 20 videos of Mike Patey going through the design and very hands on build process of creating Draco. This series could be called "Airplane Improvement" and he does a great job of explaning and showing step by step how he did far more than just go from piston to turbine power. He also has one heck of a man cave.
Click on the link and then click on "Draco Build" to start the playlist: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSvdee86uThqIrloZjWwNVg/playlists
A few additions in the Light Aircraft section ... Unbuilt and Built conversions including those Wilgas and Lancairs, but also DHC Beavers and Otter and Legends.
The “PBY-7AT” amphibian aircraft concept is based on the proven design of the classic rugged PBY Catalina flying-boat. A PBY airframe would be entirely stripped, redesigned and rebuilt for exploration, bush-flying and circumnavigation. The end result would be a complete rebirth of the aircraft, bringing this classic flying-boat up to 21st century standards.
This conversion project is based on 1) the fact that “SuperCat” and “Bird Innovator” variants of the PBY aircraft have historically proved to be successful and viable conversions of the type to high-power engines and 2) the fact that the Basler BT-67 conversion to this type of turboprop was successfully achieved in the past (The DC-3/C-47 and the PBY-5A being originally equipped with the same Twin Wasp family of engines).
Among others, the following modifications are planned:
- 2x Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-67R with Hartzell 5 Blade Aluminum propellers.
- 75-Inch fuselage extension (10%, 1,9 m.) forward of pylon.
- Complete cockpit retrofit with Garmin G1000.
- Row44 worldwide broadband internet.
- Single-pilot certified.
- Improved STOL performance. VFR/IFR/Known Ice certification.
- Improved low-level, low-speed handling and maneuverability with BLCs.
- Redesigned wing enhancing aerodynamic and structural performance. Composite control surfaces.
- Landing gear refit/optimization for bush/rough terrain.
- “Tall-tail” redesign if applicable (cf. PBY-6A/PBN1 Nomad).
- Excellent sound-proofing and insulation of the cabin to cope with extreme weather conditions.
- No pressurization.
- Redesigned hull for better performance on water (V-hull "Clipper" bow, redesigned steps, etc.)(cf. PBN1 Nomad).
- Addition of the rear observation blisters if absent.
- Addition of the “airstairs” access door if absent. Bulkheads overhaul.
- “yacht” cabin, with berths, galley, toilet/shower, workstations etc., fit for long-range travel exploration (cf. Bird Innovator).
- Standard Airworthiness Certificate: Certified for 9 passengers (11 counting pilot & copilot).
- Increased fuel tank capacity. Auxiliary wing tanks mounts. Transcontinental ferry range: 2,500 nm.
- “zero accumulated fatigue damage” certification if poss. (cf. Basler BT-67)
IMVHO, no we should not put a turbine in a Fokker triplane. With their light weight they might be able to take an electric motor so will that be next? Just my ten pence worth.
December 10, 2019, Harbour Air test flew an electric powered DHC-2 Beaver on floats. magniX provided the electric motor and other electrical components. They only plan to test fly a single Beaver prototype, but their long-term goal is an electric conversion kit for Cessna 208 Caravan. Harbour Air operates the largest fleet of floatplanes (Cessna 208 Caravan, DHC-2 Beaver, DHC-3 Single Otter and DHC-6 Twin Otter) in North America. Most of their routes carry passengers from Vancouver harbour to Victoria harbour or Nanaimo harbour or Seattle harbour, etc. Most legs are less than one hour.
I presume this advertiser's what-if would date from around the time of the F.Mk.8? Possibly an F.Mk.4 airframe I guess, but the larger F.8 tail would have been handy with the turboprops.
Interestingly there is an article on the Trent-Meteor in Air Britain's magazine this month, they show the advert Joe posted but trimmed to only show the aircraft!
I flew in a Saunders ST-27 from Montreal to Ottawa during the early 1980s. The ride was similar to a Beechcraft King Air. Remember that Beechcraft introduced the stretched 99 to compete in the exact same market (19 seater commuter). Beechcraft still sells dozens of Model 1900 commuter planes every year.
I also saw the remnants of Saunders Corp. when I jumped at Gimli in 1992. Misc. incomplete fuselages and spare parts littered an RCAF-surplus hangar.
As I commented in my previous Short Sturgeon post, the Short company found themselves with a promising airframe in search of a role to fulfil. This hideous contraption was conceived for the M.6/49 …
I flew in a Saunders ST-27 from Montreal to Ottawa during the early 1980s. The ride was similar to a Beechcraft King Air. Remember that Beechcraft introduced the stretched 99 to compete in the exact same market (19 seater commuter). Beechcraft still sells dozens of Model 1900 commuter planes every year.
I also saw the remnants of Saunders Corp. when I jumped at Gimli in 1992. Misc. incomplete fuselages and spare parts littered an RCAF-surplus hangar.
Hi riggerrob, would you have any Saunders photos from Gimli. I'm writing a book on the history of Saunders Aircraft from Montreal to it's demise in Gimli. I've started at Saunders Aircraft blog at https://saundersaircraft.blogspot.com/ if you are interested and there is a Saunders Aircraft facebook group. Do recall jumping with a Barry Penner in Gimli? cheers - ken kalynuk in winnipeg.
As I commented in my previous Short Sturgeon post, the Short company found themselves with a promising airframe in search of a role to fulfil. This hideous contraption was conceived for the M.6/49 …
View all results for DRACO 2.0 level. Search our expansive collection of quality RC airplanes, cars, helicopters, boats, radios, trains, and more at Horizon Hobby!
Esse Cessna 195, tem um PT-6 com 600 BHP, é usado em uma escola de paraquedismo aqui no Brasil, o avião atualizado, porque aqui no Brasil não há peças, nem fabricantes certificados para aeronaves antigas, e mais ainda para motores, o que acaba ficando mais barato uma conversão desse tipo
Translation of the above: "This Cessna 195, has a PT-6 with 600 BHP, is used in a skydiving school here in Brazil. They updated plane because here in Brazil there are no parts, nor certified manufacturers for old aircraft and even it is even worse for engines. It ends up being cheaper to convert."
Another reason for converting from piston to turbine is that avgas is much harder to find compared to Jet A being available anywhere airliners operate. That is why most missionary aircraft have gone turbine in Africa.
There were one-of or limited quantity conversions of the P-51 (Piper Enforcer), T-28 (YAT-28E), Grumman Ag-Cat (turboprop biplane. How cool is that?), and, doubtless, dozens others. In larger numbers, the T-34, the S-2, the CL-215, and, I'm sure, several others.
I see that a while back in this topic the 0-2ST “Sandcrab” received some mention, so I figured I’d relay a recent posting from elsewhere: According to /u/-pilot37- on Reddit, they got permission from the manufacturer of the modifications to post more images of it. They also have a good bit of information about the program in the comments, some of which I haven’t seen elsewhere.
This incredible machine is the result of a special request by Saudi Arabia; a covert gunship that can land and take off in short distances on sand too deep to stand in. This aircraft, originally a twin engine Cessna M337B (O-2A) Skymaster, was radically modified for the role in the span of just 30 days. The aircraft was developed by Brico (BRIdges COrporation), a company run by Jack Bridges (a man who supposedly had Saudi Arabian connections). It was funded with Saudi Arabia money, with US Air Force Support, under contract with the CIA, and modified by Soloy Conversions and Flight Structures.
In order to become the Sandcrab, the O-2’s front engine was removed, and its rear engine was replaced with a 650 hp Allison C30 turboprop, with a shrouded 8’ 6” three-bladed propellor. The massive shroud was installed to reduce noise so the aircraft couldn’t be detected. A third vertical stabilizer was added to the middle of the empennage, and the tailplane was extended beyond the two previously existing stabilizers. The landing gear was fitted with large, low-pressure tires and wide skis for soft sand operations.
In August of 1982, the Sandcrab competed in Mississippi with two other aircraft to win the contract; the composite Mississippi XV-11A MARVEL and the low-radar Windecker YE-5. The Marvel was found to be too heavy, and the YE-5 was lost in a crash, leaving the Sandcrab to win the contract. The aircraft was covered up as a civilian “pipeline inspection aircraft,” and falsely stated to be on sale soon for $500,000. No name was given to the public, and people could see that it could easily carry a payload (the nose was indeed hollowed out for gun installation).
The aircraft was quickly transported to Ta’if, Saudi Arabia, where demonstrations begun, flown by Norvin “Bud” Evans. These photos were taken by the same person that sent them to me, an individual who worked on the engine. Saudi Arabia was impressed by the Sandcrab; it was transported to the capital, Riyadh, and the construction of 10 more were planned. However, none were made. Information about the Sandcrab ends here, even for my contact.
The resting place of the Sandcrab’s airframe, N997CJ, is known, however. It was found back in the US at the closed and abandoned Quonset Air Museum in Rhode Island. Only the fuselage remains, with the oversized tires still intact.
I see that a while back in this topic the 0-2ST “Sandcrab” received some mention, so I figured I’d relay a recent posting from elsewhere: According to /u/-pilot37- on Reddit, they got permission from the manufacturer of the modifications to post more images of it. They also have a good bit of information about the program in the comments, some of which I haven’t seen elsewhere.
This incredible machine is the result of a special request by Saudi Arabia; a covert gunship that can land and take off in short distances on sand too deep to stand in. This aircraft, originally a twin engine Cessna M337B (O-2A) Skymaster, was radically modified for the role in the span of just 30 days. The aircraft was developed by Brico (BRIdges COrporation), a company run by Jack Bridges (a man who supposedly had Saudi Arabian connections). It was funded with Saudi Arabia money, with US Air Force Support, under contract with the CIA, and modified by Soloy Conversions and Flight Structures.
In order to become the Sandcrab, the O-2’s front engine was removed, and its rear engine was replaced with a 650 hp Allison C30 turboprop, with a shrouded 8’ 6” three-bladed propellor. The massive shroud was installed to reduce noise so the aircraft couldn’t be detected. A third vertical stabilizer was added to the middle of the empennage, and the tailplane was extended beyond the two previously existing stabilizers. The landing gear was fitted with large, low-pressure tires and wide skis for soft sand operations.
In August of 1982, the Sandcrab competed in Mississippi with two other aircraft to win the contract; the composite Mississippi XV-11A MARVEL and the low-radar Windecker YE-5. The Marvel was found to be too heavy, and the YE-5 was lost in a crash, leaving the Sandcrab to win the contract. The aircraft was covered up as a civilian “pipeline inspection aircraft,” and falsely stated to be on sale soon for $500,000. No name was given to the public, and people could see that it could easily carry a payload (the nose was indeed hollowed out for gun installation).
The aircraft was quickly transported to Ta’if, Saudi Arabia, where demonstrations begun, flown by Norvin “Bud” Evans. These photos were taken by the same person that sent them to me, an individual who worked on the engine. Saudi Arabia was impressed by the Sandcrab; it was transported to the capital, Riyadh, and the construction of 10 more were planned. However, none were made. Information about the Sandcrab ends here, even for my contact.
The resting place of the Sandcrab’s airframe, N997CJ, is known, however. It was found back in the US at the closed and abandoned Quonset Air Museum in Rhode Island. Only the fuselage remains, with the oversized tires still intact.
Hello, I am the poster, u/-pilot37-. Most of my information and three of the six attachments were sent to me by a representative of the company that installed the engine, Soloy Conversions. However, I will include here another story which I was able to recover from an old interview I found in a newsletter, written by the pilot of the Sandcrab, Norvin C. “Bud” Evans.
“Another of the strange aircraft I tested was named the “Sand Crab” by those of us involved in its’ design and testing. It was the result of several design changes made to the original configuration as a ”Proof of Concept” program to design an aircraft that could operate out of sand that was too soft to walk in. We contracted Robertson Aircraft Company in Everett, Washington to radically modify the skeletal O-2 to the design we finally ended up flying. Following my 10 test flights at Everett, during which several mods were made to the first design, we moved to M.S.U. where we contracted the Mississippi State University Aero-Engineering department to help with design changes, engineering test support and continue design changes. Their help was also essential to my flights taking off and landing from the sand runway they had built. I made three flights in and out of the sand runway and then 42 more flights out the desert in Saudi Arabia. There has probably never been an aircraft designed, built, flown, modified several times and all completed as rapidly as was that of “The Sand-crab”! The idea was conceived in April, first flight in August, flight out of the sand after several major aircraft re-deigns, transported and demonstrated in Saudi Arabia all before the end of the year. It is the only program that I have been associated with that had money available any time it was needed. Not only did we build and fly the “Sand crab” but highly modified and flew two other “proof of concept” aircraft and took them to Saudi Arabia along with the “Sand Crab”. I had full control of all the flight testing and ended up as acting President of The BRICO Company when the president of the company became very ill and unable to manage the program.”
I would be really interested to read more on their landing gear modifications and test results. Is there any white paper accessible that you would know?
That Volpar Beaver conversion served for many years with Alaska Fish and Game inspectors. It was last seen hanging from the ceiling of an airport terminal in Alaska.
PBY-5A or -6A amphibian, swapped to a pair of PT6-65AGs so it can run off diesel or Jet A. Slight hull modifications to match the PBN Nomad for better water performance. Add a single point refueling hookup, which unfortunately means running a fuel line down into the hull.
I've added a bunch of Antonov An-2 turboprop conversions to reply #92.
These are the An-2-100 (Motor Sich MS-14); 2Solitude AN-2 turbine conversion (TPE 331-12); SibNIA TVS-2MS
(TPE 331-12UHR); and, SibNIA Legenda 550 & 570 (P&WC PT6A-67T)
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