Diamond Aircraft Industries

Diamond Aircraft is an Austrian aircraft manufacturer with production facilities in Austria, Canada and China. The company is based in Vienna in the Lower Austrian town of Neustadt.

Diamond Aircraft is also the operator of the aerodrome Wiener Neustadt / Ost ( ICAO code: LOAN ).

• 3.1 fiber -reinforced plastic
• 3.2 diesel engines
• 3.3 Handling by pilots

• 4.1 Record Flight
• 4.2 A Dimona was the first aircraft with a fuel cell as a power source

• 5.1 Diamond Airborne Sensing
• 5.2 Diamond Simulation
• 5.3 Austro Engine

History

The company was founded in 1981 by Wolf Hoffmann Hoffmann Flugzeugbau in Friesach, Carinthia. First produced the touring motor glider H36 Dimona.

In 1987 the company moved to Wiener Neustadt and the development of the HK36 motor glider to the " Super Dimona ". The K stands for co-constructor Dieter Köhler.

After several changes in ownership, the company is since 1991 owned by the German-born Christian Dries, who was also managing director of the company until November 2010. Building on the motor glider ever larger engine aircraft have now been built: the first two-seater DA20 Katana, then the vierplätzige DA40, then the twin-engine DA42, and currently (2008 ) is a one-beam Kleinjet in development. By 2005, more than 3,500 aircraft were produced in total.

There are more than 1200 employees worldwide, including 580 in the manufacturing plant in Wiener Neustadt in Austria, 350 in London, Ontario in Canada, another in the Representations / maintenance yards Egelsbach ( Germany ), at Gamston Airport in England and since 2006 in the Shandong Province in the People's Republic of China. This makes it the third largest company in the world, specializing in the production of single-engine light aircraft.

Due to the financial crisis in 2007, the company got into trouble. The overall market shrank, according to the General Aviation Manufacturers Association in 2008 by 13 percent. Then in 2009, the market collapsed with a massive minus 57.5 percent. Diamond Aircraft produced 2007 or 471 aircraft. In 2008, only 308 and 2009 even only 163 aircraft were delivered. Beginning of 2009 were 180 jobs (140 at Diamond, 40 at Austro Engine) on wobbly legs ..

In 2010, already back 120 machines were delivered only from Wiener Neustadt. These were already equipped with the engines of belonging to Diamond Austro Engine. A lot of the aircraft are special versions that are used for border surveillance or to protect the environment for observation.

In the course of delayed lending of funds by the Canadian government introduced Diamond Aircraft Industries Inc. in March 2011 213 of the 380 employees at the Canadian site in London, Ontario temporarily free. In May 2011, the newly elected Canadian government finally refused as required for the production of the new D -JET loan of 35 million Canadian dollars. As a result, the Medrar Financial Group of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates took over the majority of the North American subsidiary of Diamond Group.

In 2011, Diamond was able to increase the number of 139 in 2010 to 185.

Model range

In production

Currently (2013 ) there are four different models in production:

• Diamond HK36 " Super Dimona " as a high-performance motor glider
• Diamond DA20/DV20 as a two-seat light aircraft
• Diamond DA40 " Diamond Star " as a four-seat light aircraft
• Diamond DA42 " Twin Star " as the twin-engine plane with four seats.

In development

At present ( 2012) are the following models in development:

• Diamond DA50 " Superstar" as a five -seater small aircraft ( first flight April 4, 2007 )
• Diamond DA52, a twin-engine variant of the DA50 with up to seven seats had 3 April 2012 its first flight.
• D -JET, a one-beam business jet ( successful maiden flight on 18 April 2006) to be a angestrebeten retail price of about one million dollars, the cheapest by far available jet.
• FSA ( Future Small Aircraft ), a light aircraft

Special Features

Fiber -reinforced plastic

The special feature of the aircraft from Diamond Aircraft is the use of fiber reinforced plastics to build the structure. This material has over the classic aircraft materials (wood, metal) the benefits of better surface finish and higher strength combined with low weight.

Diesel engines

A special feature of the aircraft from Diamond Aircraft is the availability of diesel engines instead of conventional aircraft engines. Due to low consumption of cheaper diesel or Jet A1 fuel, these engines allow lower operating costs of the so-equipped aircraft.

The original supplier of diesel engines was the Thielert AG, which has but in the meantime filed for bankruptcy.

Meanwhile, Diamond developed under the name Austro Engine 's own diesel engines to be used in the future instead of the Thielert diesel. The first engine AE 300 ( a four cylinder internal combustion engine ) was approved on 28 January 2009 by EASA.

Handling by pilots

The Diamond range of aircraft shall apply on private planes, especially among student pilots to be particularly user- friendly and land. Thus requires the " single-lever control " in diesel engines fewer steps for pilots and therefore allows more focus on the actual flight Done. Furthermore, are available in the DA40 (optional) and DA42 (standard) glass cockpit ( G1000 ), which transferred the functions of an airliner cockpits in the field of small aircraft.

Innovation

Record flight

To demonstrate the efficiency of their aircraft, the company Diamond has had to complete a nonstop transatlantic flight a twin-engine DA42 Twin Star on August 16, 2004. This flight was the first non-stop transatlantic flight of a powered with diesel engines the aircraft in the general aviation world. The total distance of St. John's, Newfoundland to Oporto in Portugal amounted to 1,900 NM ( 3518 km ). The pilot Gérard Guillaumaud flew with an engine power of 42% and achieved an average ground speed of 152 knots ( 281.5 km / h ); The entire flight lasted 12 hours and 30 minutes, there were 272 gallons of diesel fuel consumed; this corresponds to 7.7 liters per 100 km.

A Dimona was the first aircraft with a fuel cell as a power source

On 3 March 2008 Boeing plant for the first time a small plane - a Dimona Diamond Aircraft - with a hybrid drive electric motor with lithium -ion batteries and fuel cells. After the rise with both energy sources at 1000 meters altitude, the battery has been disconnected and the pilot flew the first 20 minutes of the flight history with fuel cells. Developed the drive of BR & TE Boeing Research and Technology Europe in Madrid with European industrial partners.

The Diamond Group

The aircraft manufacturer Diamond Aircraft is now one of a group which includes the following companies:

• Diamond Aircraft Austria ( production site )
• Diamond Aircraft Germany
• Diamond Aircraft Canada ( production site )
• Diamond Aircraft UK
• Diamond Aircraft China ( production site )
• Diamond Airborne Sensing
• Diamond Simulation
• Diamond Informatics
• Austro Engine.

Diamond Airborne Sensing

A subsidiary of Diamond Aircraft deals with the use of Diamond aircraft for surveillance observation or laser scanning purposes. Diamond Airborne Sensing is the same as the parent company based at the airport Wiener Neustadt.

Diamond Airborne Sensing upgraded for example, the Diamond DA42 with cameras. Images can be transmitted over satellite to the appropriate ground stations. This system is used for example for forest fire observation and may make the use of fire-fighting planes effectively. The DA42 MPP can achieve flight times of up to 13 hours without refueling.

The fires in the Ukraine, which took place simultaneously on the forest fires in Russia in 2010, two aircraft were used to supports for aerial observation and investigation of Diamond. Even before that was a machine in a similar mission to study the ash cloud after the eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in April 2010 on the go.

Diamond Simulation

Another subsidiary, the construction of flight training devices (flight simulation ) is dedicated to, is located in the German Trebur. Flight training devices are certified to FNPT II (JAR -STD 3A) and FTD Level 5 (AC 120 -45A and CCAR Part 60) and come in flight schools around the world to use.

The company has set itself the goal of the own aircraft types in the scale of 1:1 to replicate, so that the student pilot not notice a difference between the flight trainer and the right aircraft to operate. For this purpose, the original cockpit from Wiener Neustadt be used with absolutely identical equipment. On the 200 ° -visual system, which is placed on the " Tropos 1000" by the Canadian manufacturer Canadian Aviation Electronics system, the flight student receives a realistic 3D impression.

The company, founded as a joint venture in 2004, was renamed in 2006 for Diamond Simulation GmbH & Co. KG.

Austro Engine

Austro Engine ( formerly Midwest meantime Diamond Engines Engines) is an engine manufacturer is concerned with the development and production of piston engines for operation with Jet A -1 and diesel fuel as well as rotary engines. Austro Engine is Wankel engines for retractable power plants and driving the Schiebel S-100 Camcopter ago. In addition, a two -rotor Wankel engine for the Katana DA20 is in the testing.

Others

In 2011, were honored for their assistance in border surveillance with a medal Liliana Schmidt ( Head of Sales CES States) and Christian Dries Diamond Aircraft of the Ukrainian government.