The six to eight seat Kestrel will fit your mission–business or pleasure. With its broad performance envelope, pilots will enjoy an impressively short climb time to cruise altitude at maximum weight, enroute speeds comparable to similar-sized jets, and then the ability to slow comfortably to speeds that blend easily with others in the terminal area. This single-engine composite turboprop will consume less fuel and fly more efficiently than a jet. It will carry more payload, flying higher and faster than any production piston airplane, single or twin. Roomy yet compact, the Kestrel will fly into and out of smaller airports with shorter runways, while carrying more.
The turboprop Kestrel willalso be an easy transition for pilots of turbine and piston aircraft. Since it’s not a jet, no type rating or FAA checkride is needed. And to pilots stepping up from high-performance piston airplanes, the Kestrel is designed to be accessible and easy to fly. Fact is, turbines are not more difficult to fly, and with proper training piston pilots will readily adapt to the relative simplicity of the Honeywell engine and new levels of performance and capability.
Structure -- Applying modern aerodynamic theory, the Kestrel is constructed of advanced composite materials and proven components. Its complex aerodynamic shapes are modern and elegant, and the solid structure reflects an airplane engineered for uncompromising performance and safety - safety that’s apparent to the pilot, transparent to the passengers. Crafted at Kestrel’s headquarters in Brunswick Landing, Maine,each carbon fiber fuselage is designed to be versatile and durable. The airplane will feature trailing link landing gear for smoother landings and more capable operations from unimproved strips. The cabin will be pressurized and climate controlled, and upon certification, flight into known icing will also be approved.
Engine – The Honeywell TPE331-14GR is a proven, reliable engine selected specially for the Kestrel to be efficient and easy to operate. Capable of producing up to 1,650 SHP in some installations, this direct drive, single-spool turbine boasts low specific fuel consumption, a reduced overflight sound signature and a high TBO. With single-button auto start, no inertial separator and a better, quicker response to pilot inputs, the Honeywell engine offers the performance pilots need while reducing pilot workload. [Good.]
Avionics – On the Kestrel flight deck you will experience the convergence of technology and pilot. For maximum situational and conditional awareness, and for maximum safety, the flat panel integrated avionics suites in the Kestrel will be intuitive, capable and feature the best, latest technologies currently available in personal and business airplanes. The Kestrel pilot, at a glance, will be able to review engine and aircraft system information, airplane configuration, active weather and traffic information, environmental and pressurization settings, and approach charts and flight planning information. Kestrel will announce options for avionics packages closer to certification date.
Interior – Already larger than many of its competitors, the interior will be tailored in the finest quality materials. Compared to the Kestrel prototype, the pressurized and air conditioned cabin has been widened, lengthened and boasts an easily reconfigurable layout for almost any combination of passengers and cargo. A wider door opens to an interior which is now also brighter, with larger windows illuminating the cabin in natural light. A lavatory is optional.
