De Havilland Canada
DHC-2
Beaver

Photo: Robert Deering 9/2/2011
Lake Union
Seattle, Washington
 
Photo: Robert Deering 9/2/2011
Lake Union
Seattle, Washington

Photo: Robert Deering 9/2/2011
Lake Union
Seattle, Washington

Photo: Robert Deering 8/30/2018
Ketchikan Harbor
Ketchikan, Alaska
 

The De Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver is a single-engined, high-wing, propeller-driven, STOL aircraft developed by de Havilland Canada, primarily known as a bush plane. It is used for cargo and passenger hauling, aerial application (crop dusting and aerial topdressing), and has been widely adopted by armed forces as a utility aircraft. The United States Army purchased several hundred; nine DHC-2s are still in service with the U.S. Air Force Auxiliary (Civil Air Patrol) for search and rescue. A Royal New Zealand Air Force Beaver supported Sir Edmund Hillary's expedition to the South Pole. Over 1,600 Beavers were produced until 1967 when the original line shut down.

Due to its success, the Royal Canadian Mint commemorated the Beaver on a special edition Canadian quarter in November 1999.

Despite the fact that production ceased in 1967, hundreds of Beavers are still flying—many of them heavily modified to adapt to changes in technology and needs. Kenmore Air of Kenmore, Washington provides Beaver and Otter airframes with zero-hour fatigue-life ratings, and owns dozens of supplemental type certificates (STCs) for aircraft modifications. These modifications are so well known and desirable in the aviation community, rebuilt Beavers are often called "Kenmore Beavers" or listed as having "Kenmore mods" installed.

The original Wasp Jr radial engine of the Beaver is long out of production, so repair parts are getting harder to find. Some aircraft conversion stations have addressed this problem by replacing the piston engine with a turboprop engine such as the PT6. The added power and lighter installed weight, together with greater availability of kerosene fuel instead of high-octane aviation gasoline, make this a desirable modification, but at a high financial cost.

SPECIFICATIONS: PERFORMANCE:
Span:  48 ft 0 in (14.63 m) Maximum speed:  158 mph (255 km/h)
Length:  30 ft 3 in (9.22 m) Cruising speed:  143 mph (230 km/h)
Height:  9 ft 0 in (2.74 m) Range:  455 miles (732 km)
Empty Weight:  3,000 lb (1,361 kg) Service ceiling:  18,000 ft (5,486 m)
Gross Weight:  5,100 lb (2,313 kg)  
Crew:  Pilot and up to 6 passengers
Engines:  1 × Pratt & Whitney R-985 Wasp Jr. radial engine, 450 hp (336 kW) each
   
SOURCE:  Wikipedia