| The Sherpa was designed to work the rear and outer areas of the theater and the crews love them. One has never been shot down and they're very rugged. The crew usually flies the aircraft at 200 mph and 100 ft or less off the ground so by the time it's spotted from the ground, it's gone.
I think the Armed Services want something more sexy looking, the Sherpa was built on welding two aluminum boxes together, in other words a more expensive aircraft armed to the teeth to do the same job as the Sherpa.
"Configured as a troop transport, the Sherpa provides comfortable, air-conditioned seating for 30 passengers, features "walk about" headroom, a removable latrine unit, and has a 500 lb capacity / 345 cu. ft. baggage compartment located in the nose of the aircraft. Additional space for a 600 lb capacity optional baggage pallet is provided on the rear ramp of the aircraft."
"During airborne operations, the aircraft accommodates 27 paratroopers. Optionally, it can be outfitted to handle up to 18 stretchers plus 2 medical attendants. The airplane meets Army Short Take-off & Landing guidelines (STOL), can operate from unpaved runways and is equipped with self-contained ground handling equipment. Operational experience with this remarkable aircraft has proven it to have low maintenance costs and low fuel consumption."
2 Pratt-Whitney PT6A-65AR turboprops
218mph at 10,000ft 770 miles with 5000lb payload
Crew of three
up to 7000lb of freight, including 4 LD3 containers, and engines the size of F100 series
__________________  “War is an ugly thing but not the ugliest of things; the decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feelings which thinks that nothing is worth war is much worse.” —John Stuart Mill
Last edited by Missileer; March 3rd, 2006 at 18:03.
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