The Troyer “PR’ Mid-Wing was designed in 1931. It has a welded steel tube fuselage and tail assembly. Wing spruce spars and ribs are built from ¼ inch square spruce. A VW engine can be used instead of the 4-cylinder Henderson.
Gross Wt. 450 lb
Empty Wt. 290 lb
Fuel capaci¬ty 5 USG
Wingspan 23’9”
Length 15’6”
Engine 4 cyl. Inline Henderson
Cruise 80 mph
Climb rate 500 fpm
The Troy Air Service A was a 1938 two place open cockpit biplane, designed by Nelson M Jones. A dual control trainer registered NX/NC2619 c/n 102, power was from a LeBlond, then 125hp Warner Scarab on 1 March 1939, then a Menasco C-4 on15 August 1939. The registration was cancelled in 1948.
Other references to is is as the Cape NMJ-1A Trainer appearing on 1940 records included a 130hp Aeromarine 2-A, span: 28’5″, length: 22’8″, max speed of 130 mph, cruise of 118 mph, and a stall of 45 mph. The final modification had canopied cockpits.
The design, with 130hp Franklin, was advanced by Cluett Co, but not completed because of outbreak of WW2.
In 1987 Larry G. Trotter built the WSA-1, claimed of being the “World’s Smallest Airplane”.
With FAA registration N3417 c/n 001, on the first flight attempt, at about rotation speed the propeller threw a blade, which resulted in some extremely violent vibration that did some damage to the front cowling and motor mount and was bad enough to shake the hands off the altimeter.
After repair and the metal prop replaced with a wooden one, Trotter never got around to trying again.
It was later donated to the Pearson Air Museum (WA, USA).
Engine: 16hp one-cyl 2-cycle shipboard utility engine
Seats: 1
Designed by Phil Salzman, the 1930 Water Sprite was a cabin equipped biplane flying boat, registered NX24E.
Engine: Comet 7-E, 165hp
Wingspan: 34’0″
Length: 23’3″
Useful load: 890 lb
Max speed: 114 mph
Cruise speed: 90 mph
Stall: 55 mph
Range: 360 mi
Seats: 4
Of composite glass construction, low wing, with fixed, nose wheel undercarriage.
Engine: Continental IO-240B, 125 hp
Cruise: 135 kts
A Farman-copy built by Otto Trinks & Co Luftfahrt-material (Gitschinerstrasse 91, Berlin) during 1910/11 and fitted with a 44 hp eight-cylinder engine.
The Otto Trinks Doppelrumpfeindescker was presented at Johnnisthal in 1911 as the first bi-fuselage aircraft; its pusher prop between the two tail booms driven by a 50 hp Argus.
Built by Gilbert Trimmer in 1938, the Trimcraft two-place, open high wing monoplane amphibian.
Registered NC1302, it had a parasol wing, all-wood hull, and leading edge-mounted motor.
It evolved into the Allied Aviation Trimmer and Commonwealth Trimmer.
Engine: Salmson AD-9, 50hp
Span: 37’0″
Length: 18’0″
Max speed: 85 mph
Cruise speed: 75 mi
Range: 180 mi
Canadian firm Trident Aircraft Ltd of Vancouver, BC, tried to resurrect the Seabee in the form of the TR-1 Trigull. Trident Aircraft was established in early 1970s to develop Trigull-320 six-seat light amphibian The factory was in Sydney, British Columbia, Canada. The Trigull resembled the Seabee closely enough to be confused with it, Spence Spencer apparently having a hand in the design. The Trigull could be distinguished from the Seabee by the angular swept tailfin, floats that retracted up to the wingtips, and tricycle landing gear, the long main gear hinging to retract outward into the wings, and the nose gear pivoting up to retract into the nose.
Two flight prototypes were built, first flown on 5 August 1973, the second taking to the air in 1973. The aircraft had a price tag of $111,360 in 1979. A Turbo Trigull was offered with turbocharged engines.
Production machines were to be powered by a Lycoming IO-540-M1A5 air-cooled flat-six engine, with 255 kW (340 HP), though the prototypes were powered by the less powerful Teledyne Continental Tiara flat-six. The Trigull was about a tenth longer and a tenth heavier than the Seabee, and could have seating for four or six, the rear seat in the six configuration apparently being intended for kids since it would be pretty cramped for adults.
The stop go progress of Trident Aircraft reached its fourth and probably final “stop” in 10 years in November 1980 as costs continued to escalate ahead of the latest funding programme. With $Can10m spent already, the company estimated that another $Can8.5m was needed to establish full production of the Tri Gull amphibian at the new plant set up for the purpose on Vancouver Island. All employees were dismissed and survival of the project appeared unlikely; the two prototypes of the Tri Gull have been put into storage, the company going under in the early 1980s.
Viking Air LTD of Vancouver obtained the rights to the Trigull; Viking, incidentally, also had rights to de Havilland Canada classics like the Beaver, Otter, and Twin Otter, performing turbo conversions of Beavers and Otters, plus building Twin Otters new. Viking has dropped hints of producing the Trigull, presumably to see if there was any interest, and saying that a production machine would have a turboprop powerplant. Apparently there wasn’t any interest, since it never happened.
On 17 January 1991, the Tridair Gemini ST twin engine conversion of the Bell 206L LongRanger took to the air for the first time. The Gemini ST was designed to take off and hover at gross weight at sea level on one engine; the only twin engine helicopter that will have no written procedures for a single engine failure on takeoff.
The inspiration for the Gemini ST came to Doug Daigle, president of Tridair Heli¬copters in Costa Mesa, California, in 1986 when he successfully bid on a US Forest Service contract for a Bell LongRanger to be used as a rappelling platform for fire¬fighters.
This was the first time a single engine helicopter had been awarded this contract. The work had previously been done by a Bell 212, but this aircraft had become very expensive to contract, leading the Forest Service to look at the safety records of single engine helicopters and find the Bell LongRanger’s to be outstanding.
After Doug Daigle rappelled out of the helicopter to see what the fire crew would experience (an act he regrets to this day), he concluded that if the engine failed while the crew was rappelling, they would prob¬ably die. Even using a 212, the crew on the rope would be severely injured or killed. The 212 might be able to recover, but the team on the rope would be dragged through the trees or rocks. Mr Daigle then decided to try to design a twin engine conversion for the Bell LongRanger. While several people, includ¬ing from Bell Helicopter, had the same idea in the past, he took a different approach in wanting to design a helicopter that would take off on one engine at sea level at gross weight. The Bell TwinRanger project in¬volved a complete redesign that would weigh almost 1,500 lb more than the LongRanger, weight that caused the project to be shelved.
The first major obstacle overcome for the project was in 1988 when the FAA awarded the programme a grant of exemption. FAA regulations state that any time the number of engines or rotors is changed a new Type Certificate must be obtained. This would have cost many millions of dollars. The only time an exemption can be issued is for public safety and/or public economics. The Gemini qualified on both grounds.
Internally, the Soloy Dual Pac gearboxs have independent dry sump system utilising two oil pumps built into the gearbox case. Freewheel Units One unit each for left and right drive trains, ensuring minimum drag during single engine operation. Mounting System Combination of engine and gearbox mount pads used to secure the engines/gearbox assembly to the airframe. With one engine shut down, only the gearbox on the side that is running turns. If there is a catastrophic failure on one side it will not interrupt power from the good side.
Separate fuel systems for each engine had to be installed. The conversion also demanded a new cowling that incorporates dual oil coolers, blowers, and oil reservoirs.
The flight testing process began in February 1991.
The Gemini ST was certified by the US FAA to operate on one or both engines in all phases of flight.
206L-3ST Gemini ST
Engine: 2 x Allison 250-C20R
Instant pwr: 335 kW
Rotor dia: 11.3 m
MTOW: 1820 kg
Payload: 570 kg
Max speed: 130 kts
Max cruise: 110 kts
Max range: 745 km
HIGE: 10,000 ft
HOGE: 6,900 ft
Service ceiling: 10,000 ft
Crew: 2
Pax: 6
Seats: 8
206L-3ST Gemini ST
Engine: 2 x Allison 250-C20R
Instant pwr: 335 kW
Rotor dia: 11.3 m
MTOW: 2020 kg
Payload: 770 kg
Max speed: 130 kts
Max cruise: 110 kts
Max range: 465 km
HIGE: 20,000 ft
HOGE: 16,400 ft
Service ceiling: 20,000 ft
Crew: 2
Pax: 6
Seats: 8
BELL SDP H500A 206L 3ST
Engines: 2 x Allison 250 C20R, 435 shp each
Gearbox ratings Input (each side) 450 shp, Output 500 shp
Seating: 7
Fuselage Length: 33ft 2.6in
Overall Length: 42ft 8.5in
Overall Height: 10ft 3.8in
Rotor Diameter: 37ft
Blades: 2 x semi rigid teetering all metal
Max. Gross Weight: 4,450 lb
Empty Weight: 2,590 lb
Useful Load: 1,860 lb
W/full fuel: 1,110 lb
Max External Load: 2,000 lb
Vne: 150 mph
Cruise: 135 mph
Max. Rate of Climb: 1,340 fpm
Fuel Capacity: 750 lb 110 USgal
Avg. Fuel Consumption: Single Engine 26 USgph, Twin Engine 42 USgph
HIGE: 16,500 ft
HOGE: 7,500 ft
Service Ceiling: 20,000 ft
All Aero 