A more powerful, better-performing Cessna Caravan 208, including improved fuel burn, is the object of a program by Anchorage, Alaska-based Caravan dealer, modifier and maintenance facility Aero Twin to convert the turboprop single from its original 675-shp Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6 to the 850-shp Honeywell TPE331-12JR-701S.
Aero Twin, which has spent the last 18 months developing the “850 Caravan” and expects to receive an STC for the conversion next spring, first flew a prototype of the airplane on October 2. The company said preliminary performance improvements include a takeoff distance of 1,000 ft (on wheels) and an initial rate of climb of 2,000 fpm. The water takeoff run for the TPE-powered Caravan amphibian is 14 sec (compared with 30- to 40-sec runs by the P&WC-powered Caravan) and the initial climb rate 1,300 fpm, according to Aero Twin president Tony Cestnik. TBO of the 850 Caravan’s Honeywell engine is 7,000 hr for “qualified commercial operators–nearly double the current 3,600 hr.”
More In Maintenance and Modifications
