Crop dusters and firefighter pilots in Europe now have a new airplane option as Thrush Aircraft Company has received the sign off from the European Aviation Safety Agency for its Thrush 510G. With a price tag of around $900,000, the turboprop single received FAA certification in 2012 and has also been approved in Canada, Argentina and Brazil.
The airplane is powered by the GE Aviation H80 turboshaft engine, which produces 800 horsepower. The H80 is a modernized version of the successful M601, which was designed in the Czech Republic by Walter Aircraft Engines. The H80 has more power, greater efficiency and durability, and fewer maintenance requirements compared with its predecessor, with a TBO of 3,600 hours or 6,600 cycles.
Thrush has also made modifications to the 510G to optimize the turboprop for firefighting applications. The Thrush 510G Switchback is what the company calls an Agricultural Single Engine Air Tanker, or AG SEAT. The Switchback version costs about $1 million and can carry about 500 gallons of fire retardant, which can be dropped in less than two seconds.
Since opening its doors in Albany, Georgia, in 2003, Thrush has delivered more than 2,100 airplanes in about 80 countries.
Read more about the 510G here.
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