Sasin Spraymaster
| Sasin SA-29 Spraymaster | |
|---|---|
| Type: | Agricultural aircraft |
| Design country: | |
| Manufacturer: | |
| First flight: |
Mid-1965 |
| Commissioning: |
1965 |
| Number of pieces: |
3 |
The Sasin SA-29 Spraymaster was an agricultural aircraft produced by the Australian manufacturer Sasin Aircraft Service .
History and construction
In the 1960s, the Australian fleet of agricultural aircraft consisted primarily of machines that had been converted from aircraft from World War II and now had to be replaced. Sasin Aircraft Service, operator of a de Havilland Tiger Moth that was converted for use as an agricultural aircraft, decided to convert de Havilland Canada DHC-1 Chipmunks for agricultural use. The conversions were done by Aerostructures in Bankstown, NSW .
The changes included a redesigned fuselage, in which there was a chemical container with a capacity of 227 liters instead of the front seat. A completely redesigned single-seat cockpit was installed in place of the rear seat. An air-flow sprayer was mounted under the front fuselage section. The pilot was now 28 cm higher than in the original aircraft. The wing tips have been redesigned to reduce stall speed. The Chipmunk's original de Havilland Gipsy Major engine was retained, but the original metal propeller was replaced with a lighter wooden propeller.
The prototype first flew in mid-1965 and received type certification and airworthiness certificate on September 1, 1965. The following day, however, the machine was destroyed in an aircraft accident. Two more Chipmunk were converted, one of which crashed in 1970. The last Spraymaster was restored in the mid-2000s and used as a warbird from then on .
Another version with a 500 l chemical container and a 210 hp Continental IO-360 engine - the SA-29 Mk. 2 - as well as larger aircraft with four seats and a payload of one ton were designed, but did not leave the drawing board .
A two-seater conversion - the Aerostructures SA29 Sundowner - was also carried out in one copy with a new cockpit and many modifications that were adopted by the Spraymaster. This machine also had wing tip tanks.
Technical specifications
| Parameter | Data (DHC-1 Chipmunk) |
|---|---|
| crew | 1 |
| length | 7.75 m |
| span | 10.47 m |
| height | 2.1 m |
| Wing area | 16 m² |
| Wing extension | 6.9 |
| Empty mass | 646 kg |
| Max. Takeoff mass | 1043 kg |
| Cruising speed | 138 km / h |
| Top speed | 217 km / h |
| Service ceiling | 5200 m |
| Range | 445 km |
| Engines | 1 × de Havilland Gipsy Major 10 Mk. 1 with 108 kW |
See also
Individual evidence
- ^ Sport and Business. Flight International, January 13, 1966, p. 58 (online archive version), accessed December 28, 2008.
- ↑ a b c d Eric Allen: Made in Australia. Three Aussie AG planes. Airtruk - Cropmaster - Spraymaster. Aero Australia magazine, No. July 19 / September 2008, Chevron Publishing Group Pty. Ltd., Lane Cove NSW, pp. 42-48.
- ↑ a b c d e David Eyre: SASIN / AEROSTRUCTURES SA29 SPRAYMASTER. The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft in Australia and New Zealand, Sunshine Books, Hornsby NSW 1983, ISBN 0-86777-272-7 , p. 189.
- ↑ Tropical Warbird! Classic Wings magazine, Issue 71 (Vol. 16, No. 3), Classic Wings Downunder Ltd., Blenheim, NZ, ISSN 1172-9643 , p. 44.
- ↑ Aerostructures Sundowner Description Page , accessed April 30, 2013