Coming soon, AT-1002

by Bill Lavender

OLNEY, TX — It all started in 1951, when a very young Texas A&M aeronautical engineering student and “duster pilot”, Leland Snow, began building the first Snow Aeronautical aircraft, the S-1. Its hopper held a mere 210 gallons, with a significant improvement in flying characteristics over the then present day Stearman aircraft. Since then, there has been a fleet of aircraft designed and built by Leland Snow, consisting of more than 15 models of Air Tractors. Now with hopper sizes up to 820 gallons, a new era of ag/firefighting aircraft is about to start with the introduction of the Air Tractor AT-1002.

It was once believed the AT-802 would be a much too large ag-aircraft. That has since been undeniably proven wrong, with many ag-operators using the aircraft for all types of work, including firefighting. The AT-802F has led the way for the Single Engine Air Tanker (SEAT) program’s growth. Now, the stage is set for the second generation of SEAT aircraft to enter the arena, the 1,060-gallon AT-1002, five times larger than the S-1!

Although it may be another 12-18 months before the AT-1002 is working, it is well on its way for type certification. During AgAir Update’s tour of the work being done on the AT-1002 at the factory, Leland Snow explained the aircraft’s many differences to its smaller sister ship, the AT-802. Most notable, unlike the AT-802 with its single cockpit or tandem dual cockpit arrangement, all AT-1002s will have side-by-side dual seating. Dual controls will be optional, taking only three to four hours to make the bolt-on installation.

When asked about the cockpit seating arrangement, Mr. Snow explained how the first consideration was addressing the center of gravity (CG) of the aircraft. By extending the overall width of the longerons 10 inches for hopper enlargement, it became necessary to place the additional weight of a second pilot/passenger as close as possible to the aircraft’s CG. This resulted in the side-by-side dual cockpit design. The pilot’s all-new design throttle/prop/mixture quadrant will be on his left side. The co-pilot’s quadrant for the dual control aircraft will be to the right side of the co-pilot, interconnected to the pilot’s quadrant.

The AT-1002 is more than just a larger hopper AT-802. Engineering required the 4130 steel fuselage tubing to have an .083-inch wall thickness and 1.75-inch diameter, compared to the AT-802’s .058-inch wall thickness and 1.62-inch diameter 4130 steel tubing.

The AT-1002 will have a 57% larger hopper gate opening to enhance coverage levels of fire retardant dropped on fire lines. It will have four-inch plumbing to the spray pump. The ag-version of the AT-1002 will have a 41-inch Transland gate box.

The AT-1002s design takes into consideration its dual purpose as a firefighter and an ag-aircraft. The AT-1002’s hopper sump can be changed over from its firefighting configuration to one for ag-work, making it much easier to convert than the AT-802. Although not a true quick change set up, the change over can easily be made to accommodate operators who work a firefighting contract, but also need to be able to handle ag-work during the off-fire season.

To give a reality check on the physical differences of the AT-802 verses the AT-1002, the following is an abbreviated comparison of the two aircraft’s specs: certificated gross weight of 16,000 pounds vs. 20,000 pounds, empty weight of 7,210 pounds (two-seat) vs. 8,500 pounds, wingspan of 59.25 feet vs. 60.33 feet, wing area of 401 s.f. vs. 446.6 s.f., length of 35.7 feet vs. 36.25 feet, and a height of 11 feet vs. 11.25 feet.

The AT-802 is usually powered with a PT6A-67AG turboprop engine, which develops 1,350 SHP. In the future, it may have the new 1,600 SHP PT6A-67F engine, just like its larger sister, the AT-1002. But, the difference will be the AT-802’s PT6A-67F engine will be de-rated to 1,425 SHP, the certificated horsepower limit of the AT-802. Both configurations will use the AT-802’s 118-inch Hartzell prop. Pratt & Whitney Canada expects to have the certification of the PT6A-67F engine completed very soon, before the type certification of the AT-1002.

It is apparent that the AT-1002 is comparatively a much larger aircraft than any of its Air Tractor predecessors. When AgAir Update asked Mr. Snow how the cost of this new aircraft compares to the AT-802, he explained, “Today’s AT-802 list price is about $1.3 million USD. When taking into account the hopper size, in today’s dollars the AT-1002 will cost about the same per hopper gallon.” This would mean with a 25% increase in hopper size, the ag-operator can expect about a 25% increase in list price for the AT-1002, or about $1.7 million USD.

Mr. Snow stated the initial planned production rate for the AT-1002 in 2009 should be about 12 aircraft a year, or one a month. Once the type certificate is issued, it is easy to speculate the demand for this aircraft will exceed the first year’s production. Over 250 AT-802s have been built since the first one was sold to Danny Kubeca of Texas in 1993. The AT-802’s production made up over half of the aircraft built last year at Air Tractor. Perhaps the introduction of the AT-1002 will ease the demand for the AT-802, or maybe just more Air Tractors will be built...