Transavia PL-12 Airtruk | |
|---|---|
| Country | Australia |
| Role | Agricultural aircraft |
| First flight | 2 April 1965 |
| Built | 138 |
The Transavia PL-12 Airtruk is a single-engine agricultural aircraft designed and built by the Transavia Corporation in Australia. The Airtruk is a shoulder-wing strut braced sesquiplane of all-metal construction, with the cockpit mounted above a tractor-location opposed-cylinder air-cooled engine and short pod fuselage with rear door. The engine cowling, rear fuselage and top decking are of fibreglass. It has a tricycle undercarriage, the main units of which are carried on the lower sesquiplane wings. It has twin tail booms with two unconnected tails. Its first flight was on 22 April 1965, and was certified on 10 February 1966.
Source: Transavia PL-12 Airtruk on Wikipedia
| Transavia PL12 Airtruck Walk Around | |
|---|---|
| Photographer | Vladimir Yakubov |
| Localisation | Museum of Transport and Technology, Auckland, New Zealand |
| Photos | 94 |
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Unique Design and Characteristics
The Transavia PL-12 Airtruk, often cited as one of the world’s most bizarre-looking aircraft, is a rugged Australian-built agricultural plane designed by Luigi Pellarini. Its unconventional layout is a direct result of its specialized mission requirements for crop dusting and topdressing.
- Unconventional Fuselage: Features a short, stubby pod fuselage centered around the chemical hopper/tank. The pilot’s cockpit is high-mounted above the engine, providing exceptional forward and downward visibility and enhancing pilot safety by placing them above the heavy engine and hopper in the event of a crash.
- Twin Tail Booms: The most distinguishing feature is the twin tail booms supporting unconnected tails (fins and rudders). This design allows a loading truck to back up between the booms to quickly fill the hopper, even with the engine running, which significantly reduces turnaround time. It also keeps corrosive chemicals away from the tail structure.
- Sesquiplane Wing: The aircraft is technically a sesquiplane, meaning it has one main wing (shoulder-mounted) and a much smaller lower wing (stub wings) which primarily serve to mount the main landing gear.
- Multi-Role Capability: Although primarily an agricultural aircraft, a utility variant (PL-12U) was developed for cargo, air ambulance, aerial survey, and even to ferry up to five passengers (one in the upper cockpit, four in the lower cabin behind the hopper).
Specifications and Performance (PL-12/T-300 Variant)
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Role | Agricultural/Utility Aircraft |
| Manufacturer | Transavia Corporation (Australia) |
| Crew | 1 pilot |
| Capacity (Ag) | 910 kg (2,000 lb) dry chemicals / 818 L (216 US gal) liquids |
| Powerplant | 1 Rolls-Royce/Continental IO-520-D (or Lycoming IO-540) flat-six piston engine, **300 hp** |
| Max Takeoff Weight (Agricultural) | 1,855 kg (4,090 lb) |
| Max Cruise Speed | 176 km/h (95 knots) at 75% power |
| Stall Speed (Flaps Down) | 96 km/h (52 knots) |
| Rate of Climb | 3.05 m/s (600 ft/min) |
| Range | Approximately 1,296 km (700 NM) |
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