What is this plane #20

[gjhdiver 0]

Not too hard, but I've got a soft spot for them. Did my first jump out of one of these.....

[Rover 11]

Islander

2 wrongs don't make a right - but 3 lefts do.

[NickDG 23]

Aero-Commander . . .

NickD

[ZigZagMarquis 9]

Dunno... I think Islander too... but maybe an older Commander... I think the fixed gear gives it away as an Islander, don't know if there were any Commanders with welded gear?

[piper17 1]

Looks like a Brittain Norman Islander (BN-2A) to me. We used one at CPI in Ellington, CT back in the '70s. We would bring it in from a small commuter airline, New England Airlines, that operated out of Block Island, usually to Westerly, RI.

As I recall, we usually carried 8 jumpers and the aircraft had roughly the same performance as a straight-tail Cessna 182. Occasionally, someone might bounce off the wheel of the main gear.

"A man can never have too much red wine, too many books, or too much ammunition"...Rudyard Kipling

[howardwhite 6]

This one, perhaps.
I think these are from the OhHoHo ski area airport, which had a sharp drop-off at the end of the runway.
CPI had some sort of fund-raising boogie there.
Recognize anyone?

HW

[gjhdiver 0]

Quote

This one, perhaps.

HW

Yep indeed. It's a Britten-Norman Islander. The piston version takes 9 jumpers, and the turbine version (BN2T) takes 10. They were really popular in the 80's in Europe, though they've been in decline for a number of years now. I have a great soft spot for them though, as I did most of my student jumps out of one with no door, using front and back gear. That fixed gear was positioned just right to fling rain, snow, dirt, and whatever else was lying on the runway in through the open door and onto you in the back of it. It took about 25 minutes to get to 10,000 with a full load and fuel.

There's a longer three enginged version called the Trislander, that has the third motor up in the tail fin, but I've never seen one used for jumping. It's most commonly confused with the AirCommander in the US as they have a simialr profile.

[grimmie 186]

The Belize Air Wing flies a "Defender" model. We did a formation load from 10,000ft with it and the Perris otter at this year's boogie. It is their only flying aircraft at the moment, logging lots of hours patrolling and search and rescue missions. We are going to donate a few rounds to launch cargo with in February. I'll post a few pics.

[howardwhite 6]

I seem to remember something odd about the lower front of the door of an Islander; an angle instead of a straight corner. Or, rather, my calf remembers it from hitting it hard on a late diving exit -- maybe at CPI.
I also vaguely remember a Trislander used for jumping; I can't remember where.
In any event, if you feel nostalgia for jumping/instructing out of an Islander, you could move to Iran.
http://www.paaviation.com/skydiving-in-iran.htm

HW

[Faicon9493 141]

Quote

I seem to remember something odd about the lower front of the door of an Islander; an angle instead of a straight corner. Or, rather, my calf remembers it from hitting it hard on a late diving exit -- maybe at CPI.
I also vaguely remember a Trislander used for jumping; I can't remember where.
In any event, if you feel nostalgia for jumping/instructing out of an Islander, you could move to Iran.
http://www.paaviation.com/skydiving-in-iran.htm

HW

I remember Roger Nelson having one at Skydive Sandwich many years ago.

[piper17 1]

Well, it looks to be the late, great Dave Churchill on the right in the first shot and maybe Randy Thompson on the right in the third.

"A man can never have too much red wine, too many books, or too much ammunition"...Rudyard Kipling

[dentman 0]

In any event, if you feel nostalgia for jumping/instructing out of an Islander, you could move to Iran.
http://www.paaviation.com/skydiving-in-iran.htm

That's not an Islander on the front page of that site, it's a Nomad

[Adriandavies 0]

Quote

In any event, if you feel nostalgia for jumping/instructing out of an Islander, you could move to Iran.
http://www.paaviation.com/skydiving-in-iran.htm

That's not an Islander on the front page of that site, it's a Nomad

None of the pictures on their website were taken in Iran, but according to their press releases and posts on DZ.com and UKskydiver PAA had bought an Islander which they were going to use for a tandem business based at an airport 40 miles west of Tehran.

The Headcorn club in the UK still uses an Islander and I think the Red Devils also has one for use on its demos.

[riggerrob 643]

Yes, the upper corners of the door are truncated, like the door on a Beaver.