Cessna Aircraft unveiled a Jet-A version of the venerable Skylane at Oshkosh on Monday, an airplane that will boost the 182’s max speed to 155 knots, high-speed range to 1,160 nautical miles and certified ceiling to 20,000 feet, all while burning just 11 gallons of jet fuel per hour.
The new model, called the Turbo 182 NXT, will be equipped with a 230-horsepower diesel engine from French manufacturer SMA Safran.
The new 182 will be available in next year’s second quarter at a base price of $515,000, replacing the avgas-burning Turbo 182, production of which will end once the NXT hits the market. The turbocharged, direct-drive SMA SR305-230E-C1 diesel engine is already FAA and EASA certified. The engine features single-lever control with no mixture connected to a three-blade propeller operating at a constant speed of 2,200 rpm. SMA has facilities in France and Grand Prairie, Texas.
“Cessna’s Turbo 182 NXT delivers a solution that the marketplace has been asking for,” said Jeff Umscheid, Cessna 172, 182, 206 business leader. “The 230-horsepower jet-A engine offers customers increased range and greater payload capacity and does not sacrifice performance. This plane offers significantly lower direct operating costs due to the fact that jet-A fuel is typically more affordable and much more widely available.”
Cessna said Lycoming has been enlisted to provide field support for the engine, which has a recommended TBO of 2,400 hours.
Besides the obvious performance benefits, Cessna says the Turbo 182 NXT will also be more environmentally friendly. The fuel technology used in this engine eliminates concerns about carbon monoxide emissions, fuel mixtures, propeller control and exhaust gas. It also operates at a lower propeller speed that reduces noise.
The Turbo 182 NXT will have a seating capacity for four and feature the Garmin G1000 avionics suite with engine diagnostics display on the PFD and MFD. Fuel capacity will be 87 gallons, with an estimated useful load of 1,030 pounds. Total weight difference between the diesel and avgas versions of the 182 is expected to be only 15 pounds, Cessna said, thanks to the additoon of a composite prop and other weight-saving changes.
“This shows the direction Cessna is going,” Umscheid said, adding that the future “is jet-A fuel.”
