Air Tractor 502XP Ag Airplane Receives FAA Certification
OLNEY, TX (PRWEB) March 25, 2016 -- Air Tractor President Jim Hirsch announced today that the company's 502XP agricultural spray plane has received Federal Aviation Administration type certification. The 502XP was first introduced to ag operators and pilots in December 2015 at the National Agricultural Aviation Association Convention in Savannah, Georgia. Type certification is the culmination of a long program where Air Tractor has shown the plane meets the applicable FAA regulations through a 2-year program of rigorous engineering analysis, supported by numerous ground and flight tests with the FAA.
"This week we received a letter confirming Air Tractor had met all of the FAA certification requirements for the 502XP," reports Hirsch. "This marks another milestone in Air Tractor's many airplane product offerings since our company’s founding in 1972. Now that the certification process is completed, we are ramping up production and preparing to begin deliveries of the 502XP to customers."
Hirsch reports the 502XP is based upon the AT-502A airframe. It is powered by the new Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-140AG turbine engine and paired with a 4-blade Hartzell propeller. The combination of the 4-blade propeller with the PT6A-140AG engine produces 867 shaft horsepower, which is 117 more horsepower than the model AT- 502B. "The 502XP performs and flies great with a full 500-gallon load in high and hot conditions. It's an ag plane that will help pilots finish more acres, in less time and with less effort," he adds. "The larger fin and rudder, coupled with a rebalanced airframe and power, has yielded an airplane with excellent flying qualities."
ABOUT AIR TRACTOR
At its Olney Texas world headquarters and manufacturing facilities, Air Tractor produces a line of nine aircraft that includes 400, 500, 600 and 800-gallon capacity planes powered by Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6 engines. They are used for agricultural purposes, fire fighting, narcotic crop eradication, fuel-hauling, fighting locust plagues, and cleaning oil spills in coastal waters. From North, South and Central America, to Australia, Indonesia and China to Spain, Italy, Croatia and Africa, Air Tractor aircraft can be found in more than 30 countries around the world and are supported by a global network of Air Tractor dealers.
Nancy Andersen, Air Tractor, Inc., http://www.airtractor.com, +1 (940) 564-5616, [email protected]
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