Manufactured by Short Brothers, the Short 330 is an economical and reliable thirty-seater aircraft powered by Pratt and Whitney turboprop engines. The Short 330 can fly up to 915 nautical miles and has a maximum speed of 190 knots.
The Short 330 was developed by Short Brothers, an aerospace company headquartered in Belfast, Northern Ireland. It was based on the Short SC.7 Skyvan STOL utility aircraft.
On August 22 1974, the first prototype of the Short 330 took its maiden flight.
In 1976, the Short 330 was introduced to the public.
On December 23 1982, one of the variants designated as the Short Sherpa made its first flight. In March 1983, the United States Air Force (USAF) placed an order for eighteen aircraft for the European Distribution System Aircraft (EDSA) role, to transport aircraft spare parts within Europe’s United States Air Force bases. Eventually, sixteen more aircraft designated as C-23B Sherpas were ordered.
In 1976, the Short 330 entered into service with Time Air Canada.
The aircraft was produced from 1974 to 1992 with 141 total units built. As of 1998, just about thirty-five units were still operational.
Short 330 Design
Compared to its predecessor Skyvan, the Short 330 has a longer fuselage with an external length of 17.69 meters, height of 4.2 meters and fuselage diameter of 2.2 meters. Its extended wings have a wingspan of 22.76 meters and wing area of 42.1 square meters. The wheelbase is 7.3 meters.
The Short 330 is uncommon in containing all of its fuel in tanks positioned right above the ceiling of the aircraft’s cabin. The cockpit has two different doors for pilot and co-pilot for easy entry from inside the cabin. The cabin has a length of 9.09 meters, height of 1.98 meters and width of 1.93 meters. The Short 330 cabin was a product of genius Boeing engineers who designed the interior space, fitting and decor based on larger aircraft. The aircraft can accommodate up to thirty occupants onboard.
The aircraft’s design produced two freight variants. The first one was designated as the Short 330-UTT or Utility Tactical Transport. The Short 330-UTT was a military transport variant outfitted with reinforced cabin floor and paratroop doors. The second variant was the Short Sherpa, a freighter aircraft equipped with full-width rear cargo door.
The Short 330 was to some extent slower compared to its competitors, but it established a record as a comfortable, noiseless, and rugged airliner. The noiseless engine was greatly because of an efficient reduction gearbox.
Short 330 Engine and Performance
The Short 330 is powered by two PT6A-45-R turboprop engines by Pratt and Whitney. Each engine has the capacity to produce a maximum thrust of 1,198 shaft horsepower. The engine has two basic sections- a gas generator with accessory gearbox and a free power turbine with reduction gearbox.
The aircraft has a maximum speed of 190 knots, cruise speed of 160 knots, stall speed of 73 knots, and a travel range of 915 nautical miles. It has a rate of climb of 1,180 feet per minute and a service ceiling of 20,000 feet. It has a take off distance of 1,160 meters and a landing distance of 1,100 meters.
The maximum take off and landing weight are 10,387 kg and 10,250 kg respectively. It has a maximum payload of 3,220 kg and fuel tank capacity of 673 US gallon.
Short 330 Notable Accidents
On August 3 1989, an Olympic Aviation flight 545 crashed into Mount Kerkis in Samos Island, Greece in an attempt to land in thick fog. There were thirty-four people onboard and no one had survived the accident. This occurrence is considered as the worst accident of the Short 330.
On May 25 2000, a Streamline Aviation flight with aircraft registration G-SSWN from Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris was struck by a departing Air Liberte flight 8807. As the MD-83 was taxiing, the Shorts 330 also began to taxi on to the runway causing the left wingtip of the MD-83 slashed through the cockpit of the Shorts 330 that resulted to death of one of the pilots.
On May 5 2017, an Air Cargo Carriers flight 1260 crashed during landing at Charleston Yeager Airport in West Virginia. It was stated that excessive descent and maneuvering during the approach to the destination airport had resulted to a hard landing that caused the aircraft to gouge the runway and shattered into pieces. There were two crew on board, both of them were killed on the accident.
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