The Transavia PL-12 Airtruk is a single-engine agricultural aircraft designed and built by the Transavia Corporation in Australia. The Airtruk is a shoulder-wing strut braced sesquiplane of all-metal construction, with the cockpit mounted above a tractor-location opposed-cylinder air-cooled engine and short pod fuselage with rear door. The engine cowling, rear fuselage and top decking are of fibreglass. It has a tricycle undercarriage, the main units of which are carried on the lower sesquiplane wings. It has twin tail booms with two unconnected tails. Its first flight was on 22 April 1965, and was certified on 10 February 1966.
- Manufacturer: Transavia Corporation
- Designer: Luigi Pellarini
- First flight: 22 April 1965
- Produced: 1966-1993
- Number built: 118
General characteristics
- Crew: 1
- Capacity: 2 pax / 2,000 lb (910 kg) dry chemicals or 818 l (216 US gal; 180 imp gal) liquids
- Length: 21 ft 0 in (6.4 m)
- Wingspan: 39 ft 4 in (11.98 m)
- Height: 9 ft 0 in (2.74 m)
- Wing area: 256 sq ft (23.8 m2)
- Airfoil: NACA 23012
- Empty weight: 1,709 lb (775 kg) :: PL-12U 1,830 lb (830 kg)
- Max takeoff weight: 4,090 lb (1,855 kg) (agricultural mission)
- Fuel capacity: 181.5 l (47.9 US gal; 39.9 imp gal) in two upper wing fuel tanks with optional second tank in each wing for a total of 373 l (99 US gal; 82 imp gal)
- Powerplant: 1 × Rolls-Royce/Continental IO-520-D 6-cyl. air-cooled horizontally opposed piston engine, 300 hp (220 kW)
- Propellers: 2-bladed McCauley D2A34C58/90AT-2 constant speed metal propeller, 7 ft 4 in (2.23 m) diameter
Performance
- Maximum speed: 103 kn (119 mph, 191 km/h) :: PL-12U 112 kn (129 mph; 207 km/h)
- Cruise speed: 95 kn (109 mph, 176 km/h) at 75% power at Sea level ISA
- PL-12U 102 kn (117 mph; 189 km/h)
- Stall speed: 52 kn (60 mph, 96 km/h) flaps down
- PL-12U 50 kn (58 mph; 93 km/h)
- Never exceed speed: 180 kn (210 mph, 330 km/h) :: PL-12U 150 kn (170 mph; 280 km/h)
- Rate of climb: 600 ft/min (3.05 m/s) :: PL-12U 4.066 m/s (800.4 ft/min)
- Wing loading: 16 lb/sq ft (79 kg/m2) :: PL-12U 73 kg/m2 (15 lb/sq.ft.)
- Power/mass: 0.12 kW/kg (0.073 hp/lb)
- PL-12U 0.129 kW/kg (0.078 hp/lb)
