Weatherly 201

Weatherley 201
Role	Agricultural monoplane
Manufacturer	Weatherly Aviation Company
Designer	John Weatherly
First flight	1967
Number built	100+
Unit cost	$58,000 (1979) [1]
Developed into	Weatherly 620

The Weatherly Model 201 is a 1960s American agricultural monoplane designed and built by the Weatherly Aviation Company of Hollister, California.

Development

In the early 1960s John Weatherly formed the Weatherly Aviation Company to convert 19 Fairchild M-62s into agricultural aircraft which he called the Weatherley WM-62C. With this experience Weatherley designed his own agricultural monoplane the Weatherley Model 201.^[2] The 201 is a cantilever low-wing monoplane with a fixed tailwheel landing gear and powered by a nose-mounted 450hp (336kW) Pratt & Whitney R-985 radial engine. Its fuselage is constructed of steel tube with Aluminium panel covering, while the wings, which are unswept and have 6 degrees of dihedral are of all metal (aluminium) construction. It has an enclosed cockpit for the pilot and a glassfibre 270 gallon (1022 litre) chemical hopper in the forward fuselage. It was designed for crop dusting and spraying and was certified in 1967. In 1970 the Model 201A was introduced which had a larger chemical hopper and fuel capacity which was also built as the Model 201B with minor improvements. Another improved version, the Model 201C was introduced in 1975.

More than 100 Model 201s were built by the time production ended in 1979, it being succeeded by the improved Weatherly 620.^[3]

Variants

Model 201

Initial production variant, 2 built.

Model 201A

Enlarged fuel capacity and a larger chemical hopper, 5 built

Model 201B

201A with minor improvements, 45 built.

Model 201C

Improved variant, 38 built.

Specifications (201A)

Data from Jane's All The World's Aircraft 1971-72 ^[4]

General characteristics

• Crew: 1
• Payload: 260 US Gallons (984 litres) hopper
• Length: 26 ft 7 in (8.10 m)
• Wingspan: 39 ft 0 in (11.89 m)
• Height: 7 ft 11 in (2.41 m)
• Wing area: 248 ft² (23.1 m²)
• Empty weight: 2,550 lb (1,157 kg)
• Loaded weight: 3,500 lb (1,588 kg)
• Max takeoff weight: 4,800 lb^[5] (2,177 kg)
• Powerplant: 1 × Pratt & Whitney R-985 nine-cylinder single row air cooled radial engine, 450 hp (336 kW)

Performance

• Never exceed speed: 125.5 knots (145 mph, 233 km/h)
• Maximum speed: 111 knots (128 mph, 206 km/h) at sea level
• Cruise speed: 91 knots (105 mph, 169 km/h)
• Stall speed: 46 knots (53 mph, 85 km/h)
• Range: nm (mi, km)
• Service ceiling: ft (m)
• Rate of climb: 960 ft/min (4.9 m/s)

References

• Field, Hugh. "Agricultural Aircraft". Flight International (14 April 1979): 1179–1183. http://www.flightglobal.com/pdfarchive/view/1979/1979%20-%201229.html. 
• Taylor, John W R (editor) (1971). Jane's All The World's Aircraft 1971-72. London: Sampson Low. ISBN 354 00094 2. 
• Taylor, John W R (editor) (1980). Jane's All The World's Aircraft 1980-81. London: Jane's. ISBN 0 7106-0705-9. 
• Aircraft & Aircraft Carrier "Aircraft & Aircraft Carrier Data: The Weatherly 201/620". airliners.net. http://www.airliners.net/aircraft-data/stats.main?id=383 Aircraft & Aircraft Carrier. Retrieved 30 December 2008. 
• Taylor, Michael J. H. (1989). Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation. London: Studio Editions. 
• The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft (Part Work 1982-1985). Orbis Publishing. pp. 3079. 

External links

• TYPE CERTIFICATE DATA SHEET NO. A10WE

Lists relating to aviation General Aircraft (manufacturers) Aircraft engines (manufacturers) Airlines (defunct) Airports Civil authorities Museums Registration prefixes Rotorcraft (manufacturers) Timeline Military Air forces Weapons Experimental Missiles Unmanned Accidents/incidents Commercial airliners (by location) Fatalities (by death toll) General aviation Military Records Airspeed Altitude Distance Endurance Firsts Most-produced aircraft