Saunders ST-27

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Saunders ST-27
CF-XOK Saunders ST-27 (Heron cvsn) Saunders Aircraft LGW 14MAY70.jpg
Type: Feeder aircraft
Design country:

CanadaCanada Canada

Manufacturer:

Saunders Aircraft Corporation

First flight:

May 28, 1969

Commissioning:

1969

Production time:

1969-1976

Number of pieces:

12

The Saunders ST-27 is a Canadian airliner from 1969. It is a conversion of the De Havilland DH.114 Heron and can accommodate up to 23 passengers. The new ST-28 variant with a pressurized cabin was no longer in production.

history

The Canadian company Saunders Aircraft Corporation from Gimli , Manitoba , founded in 1968 , received the production rights for the conversion and modernization of the British feeder aircraft de Havilland Heron at the end of the 1960s.

Saunders lengthened the hull of the original Heron in the cabin area by 2.60 meters to increase the passenger capacity from 17 to 23 seats. The front of the fuselage was extended by 45 centimeters so that more storage space was available for luggage. Furthermore, the four piston engines of the Heron were replaced by two propeller turbines from Pratt & Whitney .

The converted model was given the type designation "Saunders ST-27". The prototype made its maiden flight in Montreal on May 28, 1969 . The ST-27 received its type certification in the spring of 1971, and by 1974 13 Heron had been converted to ST-27. Of these, nine machines went to Canadian regional companies, three were bought by a Colombian company and one was used in the Bahamas .

Model photo of the planned ST-28

In 1974 the Saunders ST-28 was developed from the ST-27. This ruled u. a. a pressurized cabin and numerous detail improvements. For flight tests, an ST-27 was converted to the status of the ST-28. The ST-28 should be a completely new aircraft, which should no longer be made from parts of the DH Heron.

However, there were no noteworthy orders for the ST-28. In addition, the Canadian government denied further financial support for the project after it had approved more than 52 million CAD in the previous years . Saunders had to cease operations in 1976.

use

The Saunders ST-27 was in use for the following companies:

  • Voyageur Airways (Canada)
  • On Air (Canada)
  • Air Atonabee (Otonabee Airways) (Canada) - later renamed City Express
  • St. Andrews Airways (Canada)
  • Labrador Airways (Canada)
  • Aerolinas Centrales de Colomia - ACES (Colombia)
  • Northward Aviation (Canada)
  • Bayview Air Service (Canada)
  • Bearskin Lake Air Services (Canada)
  • Patricia Air Transport (Canada)
  • Tropical Air Service (Barbados)

In August 1988 the last ST-27 were taken out of service. These were the C-FXOK, CF-CNX, CF-FZP, CF-JFH, C-FHMQ and the C-FLOL from City Express.

Probably the last surviving ST-27 is in the Canadian Bushplane Heritage Center in Sault Ste. Marie , Ontario , Canada. It is a gift that Voyageur Airways gave the museum in 1994.

The prototype of the ST-28 is still in Gimli on the premises of the Western Canada Aviation Museum ; but he is in a more than sad state.

Incidents

  • The only known accident with a Sauders ST-27 occurred on August 25, 1984 at Saint John Airport in Saint John , New Brunswick , Canada with a Labrador Airways aircraft: The landing gear of the C-FCNT collapsed during landing. None of the 5 passengers and 3 crew members were killed. However, the aircraft had to be written off as a total loss.
  • On February 29, 1976, an ACES Saunders ST-27 was hijacked by a man. He asked for a $ 300,000 ransom. He was shot dead while handing over the money at Medellín airport .

Technical specifications

Parameter Data
crew 2
Passengers 23
length 17.03 m
span 21.79 m
height 4.75 m
Wing area 46.36 m²
Wing extension 10.2
Empty mass 4000 kg
Takeoff mass 6580 kg
Cruising speed 370 km / h
Range 1600 km
Engines two Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6 -34 turboprop engines with 560 kW each

literature

  • Gerritsma, Joop. "The Saunders ST-27: A Prop-Jet Commuter Liner by Conversion." Canadian Aviation Historical Society - Journal , Vol. 35, no. 4, winter 1997.
  • Molson, Ken M., and Harold A. Taylor. Canadian Aircraft Since 1909 . Stittsville, Ontario: Canada's Wings, Inc., 1982. ISBN 0-920002-11-0 .
  • Taylor, John WR Jane's All The World's Aircraft 1971-72 . London: Sampson Low, Marston & Co., 1971. ISBN 0-354-00094-2 .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ accident report C-FCNT, Aviation Safety Network (English) , accessed on 22 January 2016th