| Fairchild Dornier-228
In terms of civil sales the 228 series has been Dornier's most successful postwar design, with orders now in the region of 230.
The Dornier 228 incorporates the fuselage cross section of the earlier Do 28 and 128 combined with an all new high technology supercritical wing and TPE331 turboprops. Two fuselage length versions, the 100 and 200, were developed concurrently, the 100 offering better range, the 200 more payload. The 100 was the first to fly taking to the skies for the first time on March 28 1981, the first 200 followed on May 9 that year. The first 228 entered service in August 1982.
Composites were used in a number of secondary structure areas on the 228 including upper wing skins, nose and tail. At one stage Dornier also planned to offer the Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A as an optional powerplant, but this never eventuated.
228 developments include the 228101 with reinforced structure and landing gear for higher weights, the corresponding 228201 version of the 200, the 228202 version built under licence production in India with HAL to meet that country's Light Transport Aircraft requirement, and the 228212. The 212 is the last Dornier (now Fairchild Aerospace) production aircraft, its improvements include higher operating weights, structural strengthening and a lower empty weight, improvements to enhance STOL performance and modern avionics. Negotiations have been underway for HAL to become the sole source of 228 production.
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