Engineering:Cessna 408 SkyCourier

Short description: Twin-turboprop utility aircraft

Cessna 408 SkyCourier
SkyCourier prototype in flight
Role	Utility aircraft
National origin	United States
Manufacturer	Cessna (Textron Aviation)
First flight	May 17, 2020
Introduction	May 9, 2022
Status	In production
Primary user	FedEx Feeder
Number built	33 (January 2024)

The Cessna 408 SkyCourier is an American utility aircraft designed and built by the Cessna division of Textron Aviation. It was launched on November 28, 2017, with an order for 50 from FedEx Express, with the aircraft designed for the needs of its FedEx Feeder service. It made its first flight on May 17, 2020, and was type certified on March 11, 2022. FedEx took delivery of the first production model on May 9, 2022.

The SkyCourier is a twin-turboprop, high-wing aircraft, available with a 19-passenger accommodation, or in a cargo variant sized for three LD3 sized unit load devices. The non-pressurized design is built from aluminum and is equipped with Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A engines and fixed landing gear. The 19,000-pound (8,600 kg) MTOW airplane can cruise up to 210 knots (390 km/h; 240 mph), with a range of 386 nautical miles (715 km; 444 mi) with 19 passengers.

Development

The Model 408 was launched on November 28, 2017, by Textron Aviation, with an introduction planned for 2020, as a FAR Part 23 type certified design. Like the earlier Cessna 208 Caravan, the 408's design was developed with FedEx Express to match the needs of FedEx Feeder service. FedEx Express will be the launch customer, with an order of "50 cargo aircraft and options for 50 more". Its unit cost then was $5.5 million.

Initial wind tunnel tests were completed in March 2018. The first flight was originally planned for 2019 and first deliveries anticipated in 2020. FedEx initially planned to take monthly deliveries over four years starting in 2020, and a similar pace for a second batch, if it agrees to that option. A full-scale mockup of the 19-passenger cabin was displayed at the October 2018 National Business Aviation Association convention. The mating of the wing and fuselage of the first aircraft was completed in December 2019.

By March 2020, initial ground testing was completed, checking the fuel system, engines, avionics interfaces and electrical systems. The first flight was completed on May 17, 2020, operating from Beech Factory Airport for a 2-hour and 15-minute flight. The prototype aircraft, along with five additional flight and ground test articles, will be used for testing leading to certification. The second prototype first flew in August 2020. It is the first production-conforming aircraft and will be used for testing the engines, propellers, environmental controls and the avionics. A third test aircraft first flew in September 2020.

In April 2021, the company anticipated that certification would be completed by year's end and initial deliveries would occur in spring/summer 2022. The SkyCourier made its first public appearance at the EAA AirVenture in Oshkosh in 2021.

By early 2022, the three test aircraft had accumulated over 2,100 flight hours as the first production aircraft for FedEx was rolled out on February 3, 2022. Cessna was aiming for certification in the first half of the year before first delivery later in 2022. Federal Aviation Administration type certification was granted on March 11, 2022, after 2,100 hours of flight tests. Certification by the National Civil Aviation Agency of Brazil was granted on August 8, 2023.

The first production aircraft was delivered to FedEx Express in May 2022.

In February 2023, a gravel runway operations kit was approved for the aircraft. In 2023, its equipped price was $7.195M for the freighter and $7.745M for the passenger version.

The first 19-seat passenger variant was delivered in April 2023 for use by Western Aircraft, Inc. doing business in Hawaii as Lāna’i Air.

Design

Forward section of the SkyCourier prototype

The SkyCourier is a twin-turboprop, high-wing, utility aircraft. It will be available in a 19-passenger variant with large cabin windows and separate crew and passenger doors, or in a cargo variant sized for three LD3s and 6,000 lb (2,700 kg) of payload, featuring a "large cargo door and a flat floor cabin". It will cruise up to 200 kn (370 km/h; 230 mph), with a maximum range of 900 nmi (1,700 km; 1,000 mi). Single-point refueling will speed turnarounds.

The clean-sheet design should offer better cabin flexibility and payload capability, superior performance and lower operating costs than its competitors. The airframe will be built from traditional aluminum materials and will be equipped with proven Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-65 engines, fixed landing gear and Garmin G1000 avionics. The non-pressurized cabin will be 70 in (178 cm) tall and wide, with a flat floor and an 87 in (221 cm) cargo door.

Operational history

(As of January 2024), a total of 33 model 408s were registered in the United States with the Federal Aviation Administration.

Operators

• FedEx Express - Launch customer, 50 ordered. First delivery May 2022, 18 delivered (As of January 2024).
• Aerus - two on order as of December 2022
• Western Aircraft, Inc. doing business in Hawaii as Lāna’i Air.
• Bering Air - Two aircraft delivered as of January 2024.

Specifications

Data from Cessna.

General characteristics

• Capacity: 19 passengers/5,000 lb (2,268 kg) payload (commuter) or 3×LD3s/6,000 lb (2,722 kg) payload (cargo)
• Length: 55 ft 1 in (16.80 m)
• Wingspan: 72 ft 3 in (22.02 m)
• Height: 20 ft 8 in (6.30 m)
• Wing area: 441.0 sq ft (40.97 m²)
• Aspect ratio: 11.8
• Empty weight: 12,325 lb (5,591 kg) , Freighter: 11,000 lb (4,990 kg)
• Max takeoff weight: 19,000 lb (8,618 kg)
• Fuel capacity: 4,826 lb (2,189 kg) / 720 gal (2,725 L)
• Powerplant: 2 × Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-65SC turboprop, 1,110 hp (830 kW) each
• Propellers: 4-bladed McCauley Blackmac aluminum, auto feathering, reverse

Performance

• Cruise speed: 210 kn (240 mph, 390 km/h) maximum
• Range: 386 nmi (444 mi, 715 km) with 19 passengers, LRC, 100nmi IFR reserves, FL100
• Ferry range: 920 nmi (1,060 mi, 1,700 km)
• Service ceiling: 25,000 ft (7,600 m)
• Takeoff Distance : 3,660 ft (1,116 m)

See also

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration and era

• Aircraft Industries L 410 NG
• De Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter
• Desaer ATL-100
• Dornier 228NG
• Harbin Y-12F
• Indonesian Aerospace N-219
• PZL M28 Skytruck