Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Metroliner | |
|---|---|
 Perimeter Aviation C-FUZY SA226-TC Metro II over Winnipeg, Manitoba c. 2007 |
|
| Type | Regional airliner |
| Manufacturer | Fairchild |
| Maiden flight | 26 August 1969 |
| Introduced | 1972 |
| Status | Currently in use |
| Primary users | Ameriflight Bearskin Airlines Jetcraft Aviation Key Lime Air Perimeter Aviation |
| Produced | 1968-2001 |
| Number built | 600+ |
| Developed from | Swearingen Merlin |
| Variants | C-26 Metroliner |
The Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner or the Fairchild Aerospace Metro is a 19-seat, pressurised, twin turboprop airliner first produced by Swearingen Aircraft and later by Fairchild at a plant in San Antonio, Texas.
Contents |
[edit] Design and development
The Metroliner was an evolution of the Swearingen Merlin turboprop-powered business aircraft. Ed Swearingen, a Texas fixed-base operator (FBO) started the developments that led to the Metro through gradual modifications to the Beechcraft Twin Bonanza and Queen Air business aircraft, aircraft he dubbed Excalibur.
Then a new fuselage and vertical fin were developed, married to salvaged and rebuilt (wet) Queen Air wings and horizontal tails, and Twin Bonanza landing gear; this became the SA26 Merlin, more-or-less a pressurized Excalibur. Through successive models (the SA26-T Merlin IIA and SA26-AT Merlin IIB) the engines were changed to Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6 and then Garrett TPE331 turboprops. These were marketed as business aircraft seating eight to ten passengers.
An all-new aircraft was built and called the SA226-T Merlin III with new wings, landing gear, cruciform horizontal tail[1] and inverted inlet Garrett engines. Ultimately a stretch of the Merlin III was designed, sized to seat 22 passengers and called the SA226-TC Metro. Because FAA regulations limited an airliner to no more than 19 seats if no flight attendant was to be carried, the aircraft was optimized for that number of passengers. The standard engines offered were two TPE331-3UW turboprops driving three-bladed propellers. A corporate version called the SA226-AT Merlin IVA was also marketed and initially sales of this version were roughly double that of the Metro.[2]
Prototype construction of the Metro began in 1968 and first flight was on 26 August 1969. Late in 1971 Swearingen was acquired by Fairchild, and the company was renamed Swearingen Aviation Corporation. It was at this point that the previously cash-strapped company was able to put the Metro into production.[3][4]
[edit] Further development
Although Fairchild studied a version with a "stand-up" cabin (as in the Beechcraft 1900D), this was not built. At the 1987 Paris Air Show, Fairchild released details of proposed developments of the Metro designated the Metro V and Metro VI. These versions would have featured a Metro III fuselage with a redesigned, longer wing, more powerful Garrett engines moved further out on the wing from the fuselage, a "T-tail" and various system improvements. Difference in engine power was what determined if a model was a Metro V or Metro VI, the Metro VI being the more powerful aircraft.
In extreme secrecy,[when?] Swearingen Aircraft developed a prototype SA 29 T jet aircraft with modified airfoil, Frise differential ailerons, inward-retracting landing gear and other refinements.[citation needed] It shared the tail and cockpit with the Merlin/Metro. The engines were mounted on the aft fuselage and were to be the Garrett TFE731 turbofans then in development. Early flights were to be undertaken with General Electric CJ610 engines fitted. When Fairchild acquired the company, this project was shut down nine weeks from first flight. It was later cut up as scrap and the fuselage used as a Metro display at trade shows.[citation needed]
[edit] Operational history
Two of the original Metro model were delivered in 1972 to Societe Miniere de Bakwanga (MIBA) in Kinshasa, Zaire, the first customer to put the Metro into service. The first airline to put them into service was Commuter Airlines in January 1973,[3] followed shortly after by Air Wisconsin. In 1974, the original Metro models were replaced by the SA226-TC Metro II after about 20 Metros and about 30 Merlin IVAs had been built.[5] Among the changes made were larger, squared-oval windows and optional provision for a small Rocket-Assisted Take Off (RATO) rocket in the tail cone, this being offered to improve takeoff performance out of "hot & high" airfields in the event of an engine failure.
The Metro and Metro II were limited to a maximum weight of 12,500 pounds (5,670 kg) in the USA and 5,700 kg in "metric" countries. When this restriction was lifted the Metro II was re-certified as the Metro IIA in 1980 with a maximum weight of 13,100 pounds (5,941 kg) and the Metro II's TPE331-3 engines replaced by -10 engines of increased horsepower. At least one Metro IIA flies in Canada with Perimeter Aviation.[6]
In service with Perimeter Aviation in Canada, this long-term operator of the Metro II made a number of modifications to suit its use in northern and remote Canadian sites where rudimentary gravel "strips" were common. Some of the many innovative changes to the design of the Metro allowed the aircraft to fly more efficiently as well as cutting down on the "noise factor" that was attributed to the early models. The airline installed Garrett engines with quieter and more efficient four-bladed Hartzell propellers. Their Metros are also all equipped with modern avionics suites including certified AlliedSignal KLN 90B GPS.
The SA227-AC Metro III was next, also initially certified in 1980 at up to 14,000 pounds (6,350 kg) this increasing to 14,500 pounds (6,577 kg) as engines and structures were upgraded. An option to go as high as 16,000 pounds (7,257 kg) was offered. Other improvements incorporated into the Metro III were a 10 ft (3.05 m) increase in wing span, four-bladed props, redesigned "quick-access" engine cowlings and numerous drag-reducing airframe modifications, including landing gear doors that close after the gear is extended.
Once again a corporate version was offered as the Merlin IVC (the model name was chosen to align with the contemporaneous short-fuselage Merlin IIIC). A version with strengthened floors and the high gross weight option was offered as a cargo aircraft known as the Expediter. Both the Expediter and the Merlin IVC were designated the SA227-AT. Finally, the Metro IIIA was offered with two Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-45R turboprops in place of the Garrett units. A special model was the SA227-BC Metro III built for Mexican airline AeroLitoral, which took delivery of 15 of the 18 of this model that were produced.
Improvements beyond the Metro III provided better systems, more power and a further increase in takeoff weight. This design effort resulted in the SA227 CC (for Commuter Category) and SA227-DC models, both called the Metro 23; so named as they were designed for certification under FAR Part 23 (Amendment 34) standards. A Metro 23 EF with an external pod under the lower fuselage for greater baggage capacity was also offered as well as an Expediter 23 and Merlin 23. The SA227 CC was an interim model and only three were built, two of these are today registered with Canadian operator Bearskin Lake Air Service Ltd.[4][7] The third also flew with Bearskin Airlines but was destroyed in a mid-air collision in 1995.[8]
Many of the improvements resulting in the Metro 23 came about during work to produce the military C-26B model for the United States Air Force.
In civilian service the type has proved to be popular, with sales in the 19-seat airliner market rivalled only by the Beech 1900.[9] It is especially popular in Australia. Since the first example (a Merlin IVA) arrived in 1975, almost 20% of the fleet has operated in that country. Currently 62 Metros and Expediters are registered in Australia, more than all of its market rivals combined.[10]
Metro production ended in 1998, however by this time Regional Jets were in vogue and turboprop types were out of favour with airlines, and several airframes remained unsold at the factory. The final aircraft, Metro 23 c/n DC-904B, was not delivered (to air charter company National Jet Aviation Services of Zelienople, Pennsylvania) until 2001.[3] A total of 703 Metro, Expediter, Merlin IV series and C-26 series aircraft were built.[4] To add to the confusion, 158 other SA226 and SA227 series aircraft were built as short-fuselage Merlin IIIs, IIIAs and IIIBs (123 SA226-Ts, of which 31 were Merlin IIIBs built with assigned C/Ns intermingled with those of Metro IIs), and Merlin IIICs and 300s (35 SA227-TTs, of which 25 were IIICs and 10 were 300s; again with assigned C/Ns intermingled with Metros, in this case Metro III/Merlin IVCs). In addition, three SA226-ATs were converted on the production line as SA226-TCs; four SA226-TCs were similarly converted as SA226-ATs; and one short-fuselage SA227-TT was converted as a long-fuselage SA227-AC. These eight aircraft each had two different constructor's numbers of various model names.
[edit] SA226 Series
- 198 SA226-TC Metro and Metro II
- 56 SA226-AT Merlin IVA
[edit] SA227 Series
- 291 Metro III
- 273 SA227-AC (11 to US Armed Forces as C-26As)
- 18 SA227-BC (3 to US Armed Forces as C-26Bs)
- 43 SA227-AT
- 21 Merlin IVC
- 22 Expediter
- 115 Metro 23
- 3 SA227 CC
- 112 SA227-DC (37 to U.S. Armed Forces as C-26Bs)
[edit] Variants
[edit] Civilian
- Metro
- Metro II
- Merlin IVA
- Metro III
- Merlin IVC
- Metro 23
- Metro 23EF
[edit] Military
- C-26 Metroliner - version for the US Armed Forces
- Tp88 - Metro III (one aircraft) delivered to the Swedish Air Force for use as a VIP transport.
[edit] Operators
[edit] Civil operators
In August 2007 a total of 366 Fairchild Metro/Merlin aircraft (all variants) remain in airline service. Major operators include: Aeronaves TSM (18), Aeronova (5), Air Cerberus (7), Alta Flights (5), Ameriflight (44), Baires Fly (6), Bearskin Airlines (12), Berry Aviation (8), Business Aviation Courier (9), Carson Air (12), IBC Airways (8), Jetcraft Aviation (12), Key Lime Air (18), Merlin Airways (8), Pel-Air (14), Peninsula Airways (5), Perimeter Aviation (20), Skippers Aviation (6), Sunwest Aviation (6) and Western Air (10). Some 72 other airlines also operate smaller numbers of the type.[11]
[edit] Military Operators
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[edit] Accidents and incidents
- Trans-Colorado Airlines Flight 2286: A Fairchild Metroliner III crashed near Bayfield, Colorado on 19 January 1988, operated by Trans-Colorado Airlines under the Continental Express brand. Both crew members and seven of the 15 passengers died. Of the surviving passengers one received major injuries and six received minor injuries; one received no injuries.[13]
- SkyWest Flight 5569, operated with a Metro III, collided with USAir Flight 1493 on February 1, 1991, killing the 10 passengers and two crew members on the Metro.
- Airwork Flight 23: A Fairchild Metroliner III broke-up in mid air and crashed near Stratford, New Zealand on 3 May 2005. Both crew members died.
- A Transair Metro 23 crashed near Lockhart River, north of Cooktown, Queensland in Australia on 7 May 2005. A total of 15 people died in what is as of April 2008, was the worst airline crash in Australia since the 1960s.[14][15]
[edit] Specifications (Metro III)
Data from The Encyclopedia of World Aircraft[16]
General characteristics
- Crew: Two (pilot & first officer), 1 pilot in cargo only configuration
- Capacity: 19 passengers
- Length: 59 ft 4 in (18.09 m)
- Wingspan: 57 ft 0 in (17.37 m)
- Height: 16 ft 8 in (5.08 m)
- Wing area: 309 ft² (28.71 m²)
- Empty weight: 8,737 lb (3963 kg)
- Max takeoff weight: 14,500 lb or 16,000 lb, depending on model (6,577 kg or 7,257 kg)
- Powerplant: 2× Garrett AiResearch TPE-331 (either -11U-601G, -611G or -612G depending on propeller fitted) turboprops with continuous alcohol-water injection (AWI); and equipped with four-bladed McCauley 4HFR34C652 or Dowty Rotol R.321/4-82-F/8 propellers[17], 1,000 shp (dry), 1,100 shp (with AWI) (745.5 kW, 820 kW) each
- * Cargo Volume: 143.5 ft³ (4.06 m³)
Performance
- Maximum speed: 311 knots (355 mph, 576 km/h)
- Cruise speed: 278 knots (318 mph, 515 km/h)
- Range: 575 nm or 1,150 nm (1,065 km or 2,131 km)
[edit] See also
Related development
Comparable aircraft
Related lists
[edit] References
[edit] Notes
- ^ This and subsequent Merlin and Metro models have a trimmable horizontal stabilizer (THS) usually used on jet aircraft, one of only a small number of turboprop aircraft to have this design feature (the competing Beechcraft Model 99 being another).
- ^ Based on production dates in the Metro production list accessed via fortunecity.com.
- ^ a b c "Final Metro Delivery." Airways magazine Vol. 8, No. 4; Issue 64, June 2001, p. 32. Airways International Inc. ISSN 1074-4320.
- ^ a b c Turboprop Production Lists Home Page Metro production list accessed via this site 25 August 2007.
- ^ The article "Final Metro Delivery" in Airways magazine Issue 64 states that Metro deliveries totalled 18. The Metro production list shows that by the end of 1974 22 Merlins had been built. However a photo on Airliners.net (here) of the 33rd Merlin IVA built (Fairchild c/n AT-038), shows it to have the earlier round windows.
- ^ Transport Canada Canadian civil aircraft registeronline search conducted 27 August 2007, using "TC-343" (the Fairchild c/n of a Metro IIA formerly registered in Australia) in the Serial No. field.
- ^ Canadian civil aircraft register online search conducted 25 August 2007, using "SA227 CC" in the Model Name field.
- ^ Aviation Safety Database. Retrieved: 26 August 2007.
- ^ The long-fuselage SA226/SA227 series has slightly outsold the Beech 1900 series but many were built as Merlin corporate aircraft; additionally the Beech 1900D can still be ordered. The similarly-sized de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter has outsold both types but is a different class of aircraft.
- ^ Online searches of the CASA Australian civil aircraft register for Metros, Beech 1900s, Embraer EMB 110 Bandeirantes etc. conducted on 25 August 2007.
- ^ "World Airliner Census", Flight International, 21-27 August 2007, pp. 32-57. The Census can be accessed online here.
- ^ Several Metro IIs are used as training aids for instructing aircraft technicians serving in the Australian Defence Forces. They are owned by the RAAF but did not fly in ADF service
- ^ ""Trans-Colorado Airlines, Inc., Flight 2286 Fairchild Metro Ill, SA227 AC, N68TC Bayfield, Colorado I, January 19, 1988."NTSB. Retrieved: 11 April 2008.
- ^ Summary of Australian Transport Safety Bureau accident report into the crash of Metro 23 VH-TFU Retrieved: 11 April 2008.
- ^ Price, Sarah, and Todd, Mark. "15 killed in our worst air crash in 36 years." Sydney Morning Herald website. Retrieved: 11 April 2008.
- ^ Donald 1997, p. 388.
- ^ "Metro III UK Type Certificate." Retrieved 25 August 2007.
[edit] Bibliography
- Donald, David, general editor. Encyclopedia of World Aircraft. Etobicoke, ON: Prospero Books, 1997. ISBN 1-85605-375-X.
- Endes, Günter. "Fairchild (Swearingen) Metro/Merlin". The Illustrated Directory of Modern Commercial Aircraft. St. Paul, Minnesota: MBI Publishing Company, 2001. ISBN 0-7603-1125-0.
- Frawley, Gerard. "Fairchild Dornier Metro II, III & 23". The International Directory of Civil Aircraft. Canberra: Aerospace Publications Pty. Ltd., 1997. ISBN 1-875671-26-9.
- Palmer, Trisha, ed. "Swearingen Metro and Metro II/III". Encyclopedia of the World's Commercial and Private Aircraft. New York: Crescent Books, 2001. ISBN 0-517-362856.
[edit] External links
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