Dornier Seastar

The Dornier Seastar is a turboprop-powered amphibious aircraft built largely of composite materials. Developed by of Germany, it first flew in 1984. The design is owned by Claudius Jr's son, Conrado, who founded Dornier Seawings AG (now Dornier Seawings) to continue work on the project after two previous firms, Claudius Dornier Aircraft and Dornier Composite Aircraft, both went into bankruptcy. Development of the aircraft was put on hold without any production Seastars being completed in 1991.

Multiple attempts to put the Seastar into production, often as a joint venture with other aerospace companies, were made throughout the 1990s and early 2000s. However securing the necessary financing to proceed to the manufacturing phase proved challenging. After several false starts, in October 2009, Dornier Seawings announced that it was formally launching manufacturing of the type, although no aircraft were actually built. In November 2018 the company received US$170 million in funding from its Chinese backers to construct a manufacturing facility and one prototype for flight, with production to follow in 2021.

Development

Origins

The first prototype, a proof-of-concept aircraft, using the metal wings from a Dornier Do 28 and with large struts bracing the wing to the sponsons, conducted its maiden flight from Hamburg on 17 August 1984. A second prototype, which was more representative of the definitive design, featured several alterations; these included the adoption of a new composite wing, which connected with a set of cabane struts to the fuselage only, and was a larger aircraft overall. On 24 April 1987, the second prototype made its first flight from Oberpfaffenhofen. Development work on the project came to a close in 1991. By the time of the withdrawal, all of the manufacturing tools, moulds and jigs to produce that aircraft had already been transferred to Penang, Malaysia, along with a prototype aircraft for sales demonstration purposes at Subang Airport, Selangor. In early 1998, Dornier Seastar proposed the formation of a partnership with Hindustan Aeronautics (HAL), with the goal of producing the type as a joint venture.

By 2003, one of the two Seastar prototypes had been restored and received public transport certification in December of that year. It was said that feasibility studies and market analysis indicated that there was a global demand for around 250 such aircraft over the next ten years; furthermore, that it was proposing three different versions of the aircraft, each one for a different market segment: A surveillance variant for government agencies, a 12-seat regional airliner configuration aimed at charter operators, and a six-seat layout that was suited to VIP customers.

In October 2008, the company announced its intentions to produce the Seastar in the US, in part due to favourable currency exchange rates. Fabrication was to be outsourced to other companies, and was intended to use mainly American suppliers. The firm viewed the aircraft as having a niche role among private owners, airlines, and search and rescue operators. In March 2009, the firm stated that it was pushing back its planned launch to the third quarter of that year, attributing this to the effects of the Great Recession, but remained optimistic about market demand for the type; it was also said that Dornier required only an additional $65 million, rather than the $150 million figure given in an earlier business plan, to establish full production status and to begin manufacturing work.

Production

In October 2009, Dornier Seaplane announced that it would launch production of the Seastar. According to Dornier Seaplane chief executive Joe Walker, the aircraft had been well received by a variety of public and private operators, and had received more than 25 letters of intent to procure the Seastar; he also stated that 2010 would be dedicated to selecting a final assembly site and major suppliers for the aircraft's manufacturing, and the first aircraft was then scheduled to be rolled out by the end of 2011.

In May 2010, Dornier Seaplane announced that it would build the Seastar in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, about half an hour away from Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The site was picked due to the strength of the local supply chain and presence of skilled aerospace workers, as well as its proximity to Lake Champlain for flight operations. At this point, the company aimed to deliver their first production aircraft in 2012; production was projected to rise from a single aircraft in 2012, to six in 2013 and to 12 in 2014; dependent on demand, as many as 50 Seastars per year could eventually be built.

Wuxi acquisition

In 2013, the Seastar was acquired by Chinese companies Wuxi Communications Industry and Wuxi Industrial Development with the Dornier family retaining a minority stake.

The company became a joint venture with these two state-owned companies, and plans to produce the aircraft in two locations, with one site in Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany and another in Wuxi, China.

In January 2016, Dornier Seaplane announced that Seastar airframes would be built by Diamond Aircraft Industries.

In February 2016, Dornier launched the improved CD2.

It first flew on 28 March 2020.

Design

thumb|Seastar, 2010

The Dornier Seastar is a parasol wing flying boat, powered by a pair of Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-112 engines, mounted in a single nacelle over the wings in a push-pull configuration. In general layout, it strongly resembles both the innovative Dornier Do J Wal all-metal monoplane flying boat of the 1920s, of which over 250 examples were built, and its direct successor, the larger Dornier Do 18 of the 1930s. Locating both of the engines in the center of the wing enables the weight of the engines to be more effective in reducing any induced rolling motions; it also protects the engines from water spray, reducing corrosion, and eliminates asymmetric thrust when operating. The sponsons, which provide stability while submerged on the water, are shaped to break surface tension and to generate considerable lift during the acceleration performed during takeoff; they also accommodate the main landing gear. Other flying boats often retract the landing gear into the hull instead.

Specifications (Seastar CD-2)

thumb|right|The Dornier Seastar on the [[Lake Wolfgang|Wolfgangsee in Austria]]

thumb|Rear view of a Seastar

References

Citations

Bibliography

"Dornier re-invents the Wal...and a Seastar is born". Air International, October 1988, Vol 35 No 4. pp. 184–192.
Taylor, John W. R. Jane's All The World's Aircraft 1988-89. Coulsdon, UK:Jane's Defence Data, 1988. .

External links

Dornier Seaplane Company
"SEASTAR" Aviation&Weekly Video