Scottish Aviation Twin Pioneer
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| Twin Pioneer G-APRS is the only flying example in Europe and is a popular airshow performer with Air Atlantique's Coventry-based historic flight in its raspberry ripple colour scheme |
| Scottish Aviation developed its Twin Pioneer as a logical
progression from its single-engined Pioneer, which saw limited service
as a rugged bush transport. The all-new design was powered by two Alvis radial engines and featured a high wing, fixed tailwheel undercarriage layout with a distinctive triple vertical tail design. It was designed to carry 16 passengers. The prototype flew for the first time on June 25, 1955, and the first production examples were delivered from April 1956. The series 1 was powered by two 550hp Alvis Leonides 514/8 radials while the Series 2 was powered by 600hp Pratt and Whitney R-1340 radials. The final production variant was the Series 3 with 640hp Leonides 531/8 radials. Britain's Royal Air Force was the largest customer, with 39. It used them for transport and liaison, with the aircraft able to carry 13 troops or six stretchers. The Royal Malaysian Air Force was also a major user. In RAF service the 32 Series 1s were designated Twin Pioneer CC1, and the seven Series 3s were CC2s. By mid 1964, when production ceased, 94 of three different models had been built. Two Series 3s remain airworthy in Australia, with a further example stored but potentially airworthy with the Classic Air Force in the UK. |
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