Reach Aviation Develops AC-6 Backcountry Utility Aircraft, Targeting $2.25 Million Turboprop Variant

Reach Aviation is developing the Reach AC-6, a high-wing utility aircraft intended for rugged backcountry operations. The company was founded in 2017 by aircraft designer Tom Hamilton, whose earlier work includes the Glasair, the GlaStar and the Daher Kodiak. His previous ventures include Stoddard-Hamilton Aircraft, Quest Aircraft and Aerocet, a maker of composite floats and amphibious landing gear. The AC-6 is designed to seat eight or nine occupants with a target useful load of 3,000 pounds, and is aimed at missionary aviation organizations, commercial operators and private owners.

The initial AC-6T version will use a 750-shaft-hp Pratt & Whitney PT6A-34 turboprop. Targets include a cruise speed of about 170 knots, a range of 800 nm with a 45-minute reserve, a takeoff distance of 750 feet and a landing distance of 700 feet over a 50-foot obstacle, and a stall speed of 56 knots with double-slotted flaps deploying up to 48 degrees. The airframe uses a steel-tube structure covered by removable composite panels that two mechanics should be able to remove in about two hours. The cabin is 49 inches wide with 8 feet of space behind the pilots and a 42-inch-wide cargo door.

A second variant, the AC-6D, would use a 650-hp, 12-cylinder diesel engine from Ascent Engine Technologies, with projected fuel consumption about 40 percent lower, a range of 1,450 nm and a cruise speed of about 165 knots. Both variants are designed to run on jet-A fuel. The AC-6T's projected price is $2.25 million, which Reach says is at least $1 million below comparable turboprop utility aircraft. The performance figures remain development targets. Reach has not announced a first-flight date, certification timeline or delivery schedule, and the company, led by CEO Samuel Spear, is seeking investment.