Bennett Airtruck
Bennett Aviation · New Zealand · first flew 1960 · light aircraft
The PL-11 Airtruck was a New Zealand agricultural aircraft developed from the Kingsford Smith PL.7 by Luigi Pellarini for Waitomo Aircraft. It was a strikingly unusual high-wing monoplane with an extremely stubby pod fuselage and twin booms.
Recognition (WEFT)
| W — Wings | High-mounted, straight |
|---|---|
| E — Engines | 1 × piston, nose-mounted |
| F — Fuselage | Extremely stubby pod fuselage with the cockpit over the radial engine |
| T — Tail | Twin fin |
WEFT is AircraftIQ's four-point recognition method — how it works.
Spot it by:
- Extremely stubby pod fuselage with the cockpit over the radial engine
- Twin booms each carrying a separate tail unit
- High wing on a steel stub wing with V lift struts
The cockpit, made from shortened Harvard glazing, sits directly over the 550 hp Pratt and Whitney R-1340 radial engine. Twin booms each support an unconnected tail unit, so that a truck could reverse between them to load the hopper.
Specifications
- The Bennett Airtruck has a length of 7.82 m (26 ft).
- It has a wingspan of 14.63 m (48 ft).
- Its maximum speed is 264 km/h (164 mph).
- Typical crew: 1.
Figures are for the representative variant described above; marks differ. See how AircraftIQ sources figures.
History
The first Bennett Airtruck, ZK-BPV, took to the air on 2 August 1960 and crashed during trials in October 1963. The second example, the Waitomo PL-11 Airtruck, flew in March 1965.
Variants
The second aircraft was known as the Waitomo PL-11 Airtruck. The design was developed into the Transavia PL-12 Airtruk.
Where you'll see it
The second Airtruck began commercial operations in late February 1967 but crashed a few days later. It was meant to replace the de Havilland Tiger Moth in the New Zealand aerial topdressing market.
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