Reach Aviation Unveils Diesel Bush Plane

An Idaho company has unveiled a purpose-built bush plane designed for missionary operations and if that business plan sounds familiar then so will the name behind it. Tom Hamilton, who designed and got to market the Quest (now Daher) Kodiak, launched Reach Aviation in 2017 and the new airplane, called the AC-6, bears more than a passing physical resemblance to the popular Kodiak. But underneath that rugged exterior, the AC-6 boasts a host of refinements the company says lower operation costs, increase utility and make most of its components field serviceable. Even the engine can be overhauled without removing it.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Reach Aviation (@reach.aviation)

That engine is a 12-cylinder diesel under development by Ascent Engine Technologies. The big mill puts out more than 600 horsepower and, like the airplane is built with strengths, durability and field serviceability, along with what the company claims is a 40 percent lower fuel burn than comparably sized engines. Hamilton is one of the principals of the engine company along with engineers Steve Weinzierl and Oliver Schneider. The engine is designed to be light weight and is being marketed as a low-cost alternative to turbines.

The airframe is right out of the 1930s and that’s by design. The aircraft has a steel tube frame clad in readily removable composite panels again with field serviceability in mind. “Maintenance accessibility was built into the design from the beginning,” the company said. “Optimized system routing, improved clearances, and removable panels provide unprecedented access to critical components, reducing maintenance time and improving aircraft availability.” It has 42-inch cargo doors on both sides and the non-structural windshield can be removed in 10 minutes to give access to panel components.

The 9-place cabin is designed for quick configuration changes. The plane has a useful load of 2,700 pounds with a maximum cruise speed of 170 knots and a stall speed of 56 knots. It will take off over a 50-foot object in 987 feet and land in 1,098 feet. It has a range of 1,340 nautical miles.

The composite fuselage around a steel cage is a concept Tom Hamilton first employed for his earlier designs — the Stoddard-Hamilton GlaStar and the Glasair Sportsman.

The flying prototype was built in a skunkworks style environment with skilled trades working alongside engineers to tackle issues as they arise and make changes as the need arises. While the common thread through the process is self sufficiency the company needs to raise tens of millions of dollars in investment to get the aircraft through certification and into production. It has quietly been sending information packages to potential investors. One of those prospects sent us the package and it’s copied below.

Reach Aviation AC-6 OverviewDownload

The post Reach Aviation Unveils Diesel Bush Plane appeared first on AvBrief.com.