U.K. aircraft manufacturer Britten-Norman has received FAA type approval for the turboprop-powered version of its BN2-series piston twin. The new, larger BN2T-4S model has a pair of Rolls-Royce 250 engines and an increased maximum takeoff weight of 8,500 pounds. The certification comes via FAA Type Certificate reference A17EU Revision 22.
The Islander series of aircraft is available in multiple configurations, including commuter, medevac, surveillance and maritime patrol. The larger variant BN2T-4S Islanders are being built at Britten-Norman’s Solent manufacturing facilities at Daedalus and Bembridge in the U.K. In addition to new aircraft, Britten-Norman also holds stock of factory-refurbished pre-owned aircraft. The manufacturer is in the process of working on type certification for the BN2T-4S Islander in India and Canada.
Britten-Norman technical director Mark Shipp said, “The USA is the world’s largest aviation market and the FAA is a hugely respected regulator of that market. We are very proud to have had the opportunity to work closely with the FAA to achieve this important goal and now look forward to the opportunities this will bring.”
Took ’em long enough!
All joking aside, I wonder what is prompting the global certification push? Have piston Islander operators run out the useful life on their airframes and they want to replace them with turboprops?
Previously un-certified civilian version of the BN-2T-4S Defender 4000
Correct and which has been in production since 1997. Would be interesting to know why, 25 years later, they’re certifying a civilian version. I suspect competition and greater availability of jet fuel are motivators.
Now, a turbine Trislander would be really cool!
Apparently hard to get/expensive Avgas in some parts of the world.
Used to jump out of one of those………45 years ago. Useful load was Pilot, Jumpmaster and seven neophytes on static lines.
Used to fly one that people jumped out of. But only 35 years ago. Bloody cold at 12,500′ with the door off in England in February, diving as quickly as possible without shock cooling the engines. That’s a good reason for turboprops.
So you know nothing of value about the aircraft type, it’s certification or the market…..
Twin Otters are in high demand, Kodiaks seem to be selling like hot cakes so it makes sense to me that Britten-Norman could have a good business case on it’s hands. Bringing a a tried and true airframe with good updates and performance to the market may turn out to be a great move with a quick certification. For skydiver driver operations it seems like the more powerful 420hp engines would have been a better choice but they may have brought cruise speed to or past VNE or caused other issues.
…son, you are a one-note symphony of nonsense, using big words as if they will make your somewhat rabid point of view sensible. News flash, kiddo… those words have the exact opposite effect; you just sound like someone who’s been duct-taped to a chair and forced to watch newsmax and fox news nonstop.
It always makes me laugh when a company website has big pictures, little text and absolutely no information on prices. Marketing director wagging the dog. Big news is you can buy a made in china hat for only £10.