Story ID: 
Cessna studies single-engine t-prop
By: Matt Thurber
Caption: It’s no secret that Cessna is in the early stages of developing a new  single-engine turboprop–one designed for fast, comfortable traveling  and intended t
Word Count: 281
It’s no secret that Cessna is in the early stages of developing a new  single-engine turboprop–one designed for fast, comfortable traveling  and intended to complement the company’s highly successful utilitarian  ­turboprop single, the Caravan. But the Pratt & Whitney Canada  PT6-powered airplane that spotters have seen flying around Wichita is  not the prototype for the new airplane, according to Cessna chairman,  president and CEO Jack Pelton. That airplane is a testbed for  technologies such as de-icing and environmental control systems.
   “The aircraft we are flying, while based on a Mustang fuselage,  is only a technology demonstrator [two flights so far] and is not a  precursor to anything,” a Cessna spokesman told AIN. 
   Pelton confirmed that Cessna is seeking to fill the niche between  the high-performance piston-single composite Corvalis and the  twin-turbofan Mustang light jet. A lot of pilots don’t want a twinjet,  he said, but at the same time Cessna engineers haven’t been able to  devise a configuration for a single-engine jet that would deliver the  range and payload that buyers prefer.
   “We’re doing a single-engine turboprop,” Pelton said. “It’s a  clean-sheet six-seat design.” And the target market is the move-up buyer  who owned a Corvalis and wants the 1,000-nm-plus range that it offers  and the speed and performance of a turbine engine. Cessna does have  internal milestones for development of the single-engine turboprop, he  added, but those aren’t being revealed publicly. “It’s a natural for  Cessna to fill that niche,” he said. “We absolutely have a product, and  we’re telling our shareholders. We’ll have more new products out next  year.”