Dornier : A good replacement for the Aurigny Trislander ?
Dear All,
Happy New Year to one and all ! I'm posting as a PPL, looking to learn more about trislanders and dorniers.
I travel backwards and forwards to Alderney, Channel Islands with Aurigny on their trislanders which as many will know are extensively used on the ACI-SOU route and inter-island. They are relatively expensive to maintain, coming to the end of their lifespan and Aurigny are actively looking for a replacement model. I also understand that EASA in their wisdom have mandated from 1st October 2014 no revenue flights can take place on planes without weather radar, which would make for an expensive / impossible retrofit for the trislander fleet which currently don't have this facility.
One suggested replacement model is the Dornier 28 which has recently been trialled with generally favourable feedback.
It has been suggested by some, in the local Alderney Journal, the Dornier may not be an ideal trislander replacement because, with relatively quick sector turn-around's, the time needed for the turbo engines to adequately cool down to protect engine life, before being restarted, may be excessive, compared to the current trislander, which could have a bearing on scheduling etc. Is this true or a myth ? How long do the dornier engines need to cool down before being restarted ? If so this might have an impact on frequent "short hop" flights vital for a island airline. If this is a factor, could the engines be kept running when passengers are embarking / disembarking or any other solutions.
Any other thoughts about other potential trislander replacements for an island with an 880m runway ?
Keen to sample opinions from trislander / dornier drivers and others.
Kind Regards,
LateFinals