The Royal Thai Army (RTA) is acquiring three Daher Kodiak 100 utility aircraft to replace four of their soon to be retired Cessna U-17B Skywagon fleet.

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Kodiak 100 (Picture source: Daher)

The Royal Thai Army plans  to procure light general-purpose aircraft, equipped with standard equipment with repair parts and ground equipment of 3 units according to the project of procuring general-purpose aircraft to replace 2 types of U-17B type general purpose aircraft, totaling 4 units, including aircraft hangar and aircraft hangar and 2 helicopters and a pilot and aircraft mechanic training course.

The Kodiak began life as a rugged, simple-to-fly backcountry airlift platform - easily converted from carrying passengers to cargo. It introduces scores of improvements over the original design, including the state-of-the-art Garmin G1000 NXi avionics suite.

It brings together STOL (short takeoff and landing) capability from off-airport and high-altitude sites with excellent persistence and payload: up to 10-hour loiter times and a useful load of 3,530 lbs.

The high-wing aircraft is equipped with a tall, sturdy landing gear for even the roughest terrain, and can be fitted with 29-inch main gear tires. Kodiak also has the engineered-in capability for water operations on amphibious floats without structural or aerodynamic upgrades, and the airframe’s industry-leading anti-corrosion process provides protection in high salinity environments.

 Kodiak also has the engineered-in capability for water operations on amphibious floats without structural or aerodynamic upgrades (Picture source: Daher)

Kodiak’s unpressurized aluminum fuselage – which can be repaired in the field – has a large pallet-sized cargo bay door (49.25 x 49.25 in.) to facilitate the loading/unloading of passengers, stretchers, and cargo; while separate doors provide direct access to the cockpit for pilots.

The large cabin is sized for 10 seats, which are track-mounted and easily movable/removable for reconfiguration. Kodiak’s fuselage cross-section and length easily accommodates multiple workstations and related mission equipment.

The large cabin is sized for 10 seats, which are track-mounted and easily movable/removable for reconfiguration (Picture source: Daher)

Flight crews benefit from the Kodiak’s state-of-the-art glass cockpit, based on Garmin’s G1000 NXi avionics suite with three 10-inch screens. This integrated flight deck has features that reduce workload and increase situational awareness – enabling pilots to focus on flying the mission. The aircraft’s Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-34 powerplant is unmatched in its performance, simple design, efficiency, low cost of operation and easy maintenance, which is why it is recognized as one of the most reliable aircraft engines ever built.