Aircraft design specifications. J&E Air Cargo owners wish to fly for a large commercial carrier some day, therefore a multi-engine will be incorporated into the design. In past experience, multi-engine time seems to be an important pre-requisite for the

INTRODUCTION

Mission

BUZZ! – BUZZ! – BUZZ! – I reluctantly turn off the alarm and slowly get out of bed. It is 4:45 AM. I shower, shave, brush my teeth, make my lunch and kiss my sleeping wife on the cheek. Frost was heavy last night, so out comes the scraper. At work, I punch in at 5:45 AM. I received my instructions yesterday, since dispatch has sensible hours. Perry, another truck driver and I are the first ones to start this morning. I take my assigned day cab tractor and hook to a load of Guinness beer. My destination this morning is the LCBO distributing centre in Whitby. Having completed my necessary pre-trip inspection, I’m finally underway. I have the luxury to daydream quite a bit in my travels; this morning is no exception. I’m hoping one day my morning starts with a walk-around and then a take-off off from an asphalt runway with me being at the controls of an aircraft. My dreams were put into action about a year and a half ago. I started training to become a commercial pilot. Conestoga College offered an aviation program and I decided to sign-up. BRAKE LIGHTS! I’m torn away from my dreams and back to reality. Stop and go traffic starts around Mississauga road. I watch the traffic flow well ahead of me. My 80,000 lbs vehicle requires ample warning to make a full and complete stop. From this point traffic moves slowly into Toronto. When I finally do make it into the skies, I’m sure traffic will never move this slowly. Approaching Pearson International Airport I notice a row of airplanes parked just on the other side of the dirt hill along the 401. There must be more then a dozen large commercial aircraft. It hits me hard this morning, but my career change decision may not have been a good one. Canada 3000 lettering is all over the parked aircraft. Rumor has it that 800 to 1000 pilots have found themselves out of work since the tragedy of September 11th. Qualified instructors are ready to take positions at Waterloo Wellington Flight Centre, but existing instructors aren’t moving up the ladder. Job prospects look very dismal in the aviation industry. It’s time to get pro-active and find another way to fulfill my dreams. In the aviation industry, hours are what matter for pilots getting better jobs. Getting hours is not a problem, if you are well supported financially. Like other beginning pilots I have little money to gain the experience needed to get a good job. I wasn’t having much luck coming up with a plan until my friend Jay approached me. He had been contemplating the same problem for quite a few weeks. He asked, “Why wait to be pulled into the aviation industry, when we can push our way in?” He said we have the knowledge and know-how to design, build and operate our own cargo aircraft. I thought it over and decided I had nothing to loose. This is how J&E Air Cargo Specialists started.

General Requirements

J&E Air Cargo has limited resources and therefore has to start small. Single-engine aircraft would be the best choice for the company. J&E Air Cargo owners wish to fly for a large commercial carrier some day, therefore a multi-engine will be incorporated into the design. In past experience, multi-engine time seems to be an important pre-requisite for the larger carriers. We decided our aircraft would have the following specifications:

Aircraft Name

Buddy

Power Plant twin piston T.C

Payload 1000 – 1500 lbs

Range 1000 nautical miles

Cruise speed 180 – 200 Kts

Take-off and landing accommodate short airstrips

Market Survey

To find research on suitable similar aircraft was difficult. For small cargo operators the single-engine Cessna Caravan seemed to be the most popular. Single-engine aircraft don’t provide the sought after multi-engine time preferred. Most small multi-engine aircraft are designed to move passengers. Our comparison aircraft are from both mentioned categories. These aircraft are:

Beechcraft Baron 58
Coleman Panther Navajo
Piper Seneca III (PA-34-220T)
Riems – Cessna F 406 Caravan
Cessna 208 Caravan
Cessna 310

Comparison

The results of plotting empty weight vs. gross weight are as follows:

FUSELAGE

Construction of the fuselage is of conventional formed sheet metal bulkhead, stringer and skin design. Inside cabin dimensions are 4.4 ft high and 5.4 ft wide at the front and rear spar bulkhead locations. Total length of the cabin from the front to the aft bulkhead is 35 ft 7 in. The cabin ...