Quest Kodiak

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Kodiak
300px
Role Light transport Turboprop aircraft
Manufacturer Quest Aircraft
Designer Evan Mortenson[1]
First flight 16 October 2004
Introduction 13 May 2005
Status In production
Primary user Mission Aviation Fellowship
JAARS
Produced 2007-present
Number built 320+ (2023)[2]
Unit cost
$1.7 million "Green-aircraft" (2012)[3]
File:QuestKodiakSunset.jpg
Quest Kodiak
File:Quest Kodiak Floats.JPG
Quest Kodiak on floats

The Daher Kodiak is a high-wing, unpressurized, single-engine turboprop-powered fixed tricycle landing gear aircraft initially built by Quest Aircraft, suitable for utility applications on unimproved airfields. A skydiving version has been certificated. In 2019, the Quest Aircraft Company was acquired by Daher Group, a French industrial conglomerate[4].

The Kodiak is intended more for the utilitarian market, although an executive interior, the "Summit package" with club seating, was introduced in 2009.

Design and development

Engineering design began in 1999, while the company organization was being finalized.[5] The goal was to create a utilitarian vehicle capable of carrying 10+ persons, using aluminum construction, short-field capability, and good useful load.[6] Large contributors to the Kodiak's STOL performance are a fixed, discontinuous leading edge on the outboard wing and the high performance Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-34 turboprop engine of 750 hp (559 kW).

Passenger seats in the Kodiak are track-mounted and easily removed. It has standard access doors for pilot and co-pilot positions, with a clamshell door (48.5" × 50") in the aft fuselage for cargo loading or for access to the other eight passenger positions (the lower half of the clamshell door has automatically extending/retracting steps).

In June 2010, Wipaire, Inc. was granted Supplemental Type Certification allowing Wipline 7000 Amphibious Floats to be installed on Kodiaks.[7] In November of that same year it was also certified for flight into known icing after the installation of a TKS system, which protects exposed surfaces via glycol-based fluids.[8]

Operational history

The first Kodiak was delivered to launch customer Spirit Air in January 2008.[9] As of September 2013 a total of 100 Kodiaks had been built, with the 100th aircraft being delivered to US operator Sunstate Aviation.[10] The Kodiak was designed for use by Mission societies and several aircraft have been delivered to organisations such as Mission Aviation Fellowship and JAARS.[11][12] Some of the Kodiaks built have been produced under Quest Aircraft's so-called Quest Mission Team (QMT) program.[12] The QMT program aims to sell one of every eleven Kodiaks built to a mission organisation at cost price.[12]

Acquisition by Daher and subsequent activities

In June 2019, Daher, the French maker of the TBM family of single-engine turboprops, announced the intention to purchase the Sandpoint, Idaho-based Quest Aircraft, builder of the Kodiak 100 utility turboprop.[13] The sale was finalized in October 2019.[14] The company announced its FAA certification at EAA AirVenture 2022 of their new variant, the Kodiak 900.[15] In October 2023, Daher announced the opening of a new paint facility in Sandpoint, Idaho. Painting was previously performed out-of-state.[16]

“This underscores our commitment to the Kodiak’s future as we evolve the aircraft family,” said Nicolas Chabbert, senior vice president of Daher’s Aircraft Division. “It follows the launch of two new Kodiak versions since Daher purchased the product line four years ago: the enhanced Kodiak 100 Series III, which we introduced during 2021; and the larger Kodiak 900, unveiled in July 2022.”

Variants

100
Basic model, FAA certificated on 31 May 2007.[17]
900
Advanced model offering extended range up to 1129 NM, state of the art avionics and a 900 HP Pratt and Whitney PT6A-140A engine.[18]
Air Claw
A surveillance modification by Northrop Grumman with a FLIR systems Star Saphire sensor and a Persistent Surveillance Systems Hawkeye wide area sensor.[19]

Operators

 United States
 Indonesia
 Papua New Guinea
 Canada
 Ecuador
 Panama
 India

Specifications

Data from Flying, February 2009;[26] FAA Type Certificate.[17][27]

General characteristics

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 183 KIAS (211 mile/hr) 339 km/hr
  • Stall speed: 77 knots (flaps retracted), 59 knots (flaps extended) (89 mile/hr (flaps retracted), 68 mile/hr (flaps extended)) 143 km/hr (flaps retracted), 109 km/hr (flaps extended)
  • Range: 1,032 nautical miles at 12,000 ft (3,700 m), 179 knots (332 km/h) ()
  • Endurance: 5.9 hours at 10,000 ft (3,000 m), high-speed cruise
  • Service ceiling: 25,000 ft (7620 m)
  • Rate of climb: (max. cont. at Sea Level) 1,371 ft/min (6.96 m/s) 874 ft/min @ 10,000 ft
  • Wing loading: 30.22 lb/ft² (147.6 kg/m²)

See also

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration and era

References

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  • Quest Aircraft Website
  • Marsh, Alton K. AOPA Pilot 2006

External links

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