Diamond DA42

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DA42 Twin Star
Type Light twin-engined utility and trainer aircraft
Manufacturer Diamond Aircraft Industries
Maiden flight 9 December 2002
Introduced 2004
Status In production
Unit cost US$600,000
Diamond DA 42 Twin Star instrument panel showing the Garmin G1000 glass cockpit installation
Diamond DA 42 Twin Star instrument panel showing the Garmin G1000 glass cockpit installation
Diamond DA 42 Twin Star Thielert Centurion 1.7 diesel engine
Diamond DA 42 Twin Star Thielert Centurion 1.7 diesel engine

The Diamond DA42 Twin Star is a four seat, twin engine, propeller-driven airplane manufactured by Diamond Aircraft Industries. Its airframe is molded largely of composite materials.

Contents

[edit] Development

The DA42 Twin Star was certified in Europe in 2004[1] and in the United States in 2005.[2]

The airplane is made of carbon composite material. It is equipped with a Garmin G1000 glass cockpit.[3] (A proof-of-concept version powered by two 180 hp Lycoming IO-360 engines also exists.[4])

The DA42 Twin Star was the first diesel-powered aircraft to make a non-stop crossing of the North Atlantic, in 12.5 hours, with an average fuel consumption of 5.74 gallons per hour (2.87 gallons per hour per engine).[5]

[edit] Thielert Centurion diesel engines

The DA42 is unusual in that it is powered by two Thielert Centurion 1.7 diesel engines. Based on production Diamler Mercedes TDI automotive engines, Centurion aerodiesels are modified with propeller reduction drives and given redundant hardware specific to aeronautical use. The engines can operate on diesel fuel, but according to TAE Centurion, Thielert's aircraft engine subsidiary, the company has elected to license the engines for jet fuel use only. In the United States, Jet-A or Jet-A1 fuel (or mixture) is used. A significant percentage of DA42s are used in flight training, where the aircraft is about 30% to 40% more fuel efficient than its main competitor, the Piper Seminole, which uses 180 horsepower Lycoming engines to deliver similar cruise speeds and payloads.[citation needed]

Thielert Aircraft Engines ended its production of the 1.7 L. Centurion engines (designated as TAE 125-01 Centurion 1.7) in favour of a new 2.0 L. (TAE 125-02-99) engine.[6] Diamond began installing this new 2.0 L. engine in early 2007. Although engine displacement increased, it has been de-rated to produce the same horsepower (135) and torque (302 ft·lbf.) as the 1.7 L. engine.[7]

In late 2007, Diamond aircraft announced it would begin building and installing its own aerodiesels, through a subsidiary, Austro Engine gmbH, and with other partners that included Mercedes Benz Technologies.

The future use of Thielert engines on the DA42 is in doubt due to Thielert filing for insolvency in April 2008.[8]

In May 2008 Diamond Aircraft indicated that they are acquiring as many engine parts as possible from Thielert to ensure serviceability of the existing DA42 fleet.[9] Negotiations between Diamond and Thielert failed to find a solution and Diamond informed its customers with Thielert engines that "Unfortunately, the insolvency administration has not accepted any part of our proposal." [10]

As of May 2008 Diamond Aircraft has over thirty DA42 Twin Stars on the production line in London, Ontario waiting for engines to be available. Diamond plans to continue DA42 production, but has warned customers: "given the current situation, there may be unusual delays in service and response to technical inquiries."[9]

On May 14, 2008 Thielert announced that it will no longer honour engine warranties for engines installed in Diamond Aircraft. Owners who require warranty work will be required to pay cash in advance for parts that they need. Kuebler, the company handling Thielert's bankruptcy, is offering replacement gearboxes for 16,000 US Dollars.[11] These gearboxes must be paid for in advance, and do not come with a warranty.[11] Gearboxes must be replaced every 300 hours, which means that gearbox replacement, amortized over the life of the engine, amounts to over 100 dollars per hour of operation.[11] Lycoming engines of similar horsepower cost less than 12 dollars per hour to overhaul.[11] This announcement has caused a predictably negative reaction from Diamond DA42 owners. Diamond Aircraft has not yet determined if it is able to honour the warranties in place of the engine manufacturer.[12]

[edit] Special Variants

DA42 outfitted for aerial survey
DA42 outfitted for aerial survey
DA42 at the MAKS Airshow in Moscow, 2007
DA42 at the MAKS Airshow in Moscow, 2007

Starting in 2006, several organizations, including Diamond, have recognized the aircraft's potential in survey operations. Diamond is developing a "Multi-Purpose Platform" version of the DA42 (see external link below). Other aerial survey operators are outfitting the aircraft with instruments for magnetic surveying. The fiberglass structure is recognized as causing low interference to instruments sensitive to the earth's magnetic field.[citation needed]

[edit] Type Clubs

The Diamond family of aircraft is supported by two active aircraft type clubs, The Diamond Aviators Association.[13] and the Diamond Aircraft Owners Free Forum.[14]

[edit] Operators

Flag of the United States United States

[edit] Specifications (DA42 Twin Star)

General characteristics

  • Crew: one pilot
  • Capacity: three passengers
  • Length: 28 ft 1 in (8.56 m)
  • Wingspan: 44 ft 6 in (13.56 m)
  • Height: 8 ft 2 in (2.48 m)
  • Wing area: 175 ft2 (16.3 m2)
  • Airfoil: Wortmann FX 63-317 (Smoothed)
  • Empty weight: 2,761 lb (1,251 kg)
  • Useful load: 1,174 lb (532 kg)
  • Max takeoff weight: 3,935 lb (1,783 kg)
  • Powerplant: 2× Thielert Centurion 1.7 or 2.0 L. turbocharged diesel engines, 135 hp (101 kW) each
  • * Fuel : 50 US gallons usable (standard) or 76 US gallons (extended)

Performance

  • Rate of climb (one engine inoperative): 170 ft/min (51.8 m/min)

[edit] References

  1. ^ Diamond Aircraft (May 2004). DA42 Twin Star EASA certification.
  2. ^ Diamond Aircraft (July 2005). DA42-TDI Twin Star FAA certified.
  3. ^ Diamond Aircraft (2003). Garmin's G1000 System offered in the DA42 Twin Star. Retrieved on 2008-04-15.
  4. ^ Diamond Aircraft (july 2005). Twin Twin Stars Inbound!. Retrieved on 2008-04-15.
  5. ^ Diamond Aircraft (2004). DA42 Twin Star crosses Atlantic non-stop: first Atlantic crossing of a diesel powered aircraft. Retrieved on 2008-04-15.
  6. ^ Thielert Aviation Engines (January 2007). Thielert engine in next development stage. Retrieved on 2008-04-15.
  7. ^ Diamond Aircraft Product pages.
  8. ^ Niles, Russ (April 2008). More Trouble For Thielert. Retrieved on 2008-04-24.
  9. ^ a b AvWeb Staff (May 2008). Cessna Suspends Diesel 172 Sales, Diamond Steps Up Support. Retrieved on 2008-05-05.
  10. ^ Diamond Says Thielert Insolvency Administrator Is Playing Hardball. Retrieved on 2008-04-24.
  11. ^ a b c d [first = Paul]. Thielert: How To Kill A Company (Maybe Two). Retrieved on 2008-05-27.
  12. ^ Bertorelli, Paul (May 2008). Thielert: No Warranty Support For Diamond Diesels. Retrieved on 2008-05-15.
  13. ^ Diamond Aviators Association (undated). Diamond Aviators Association. Retrieved on 2008-02-03.
  14. ^ Diamond Aircraft Owners Free Forum (March 2008). Diamond Aircraft Owners Free Forum. Retrieved on 2008-03-11.
  15. ^ Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (March 2008). Embry-Riddle the First Sponsor to Receive FAA Level 6 Approval for Frasca DA-42 FTDs. Retrieved on 2008-06-01.

[edit] External links

[edit] See also

Comparable aircraft

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