AFTER TASTING success with the Islander/Trislander series of light multi-purpose aircraft, and failure with his subsequent Firecracker and Field- master models, UK design veteran Desmond Norman is trying again.
His latest project, in which he is teamed with ex-Hawker employee Alec Clark in Clark-Norman Aircraft, is the Triloader, a larger, but not dissimilar, aircraft to the BN-2 MkIII Trislander, aimed at the utility freight-transport market.
With an engine configuration almost identical to that of the Trislander but with three 450kW (600hp) turboprops, the 8,530kg low-cost, short-range, aircraft could be flown in August 1997 and be certificated by December 1998, according to Clark.
Design and construction of a prototype will be undertaken at Sandown, Isle of Wight, while negotiations for series production of the Triloader are already under way with a European manufacturer.
Preliminary performance figures indicate a take-off run at sea level of just 740ft (225m); long-range cruise speed of 155kt (290km/h); and a range of 580km (315nm) with a payload of 3,000kg.
The large hold can accommodate up to five LD3 containers. Side doors are proposed for palletised cargo and a front-loading door for containers and bulky goods. Wingspan is 24.4m and length 19.05m
Source: Flight International
