Cessna Caravan 208

Cessna By Textron Aviation

After Clyde V. Cessna attended an aircraft show in 1911, he became inspired to build aircraft. He built his first aircraft with a kit from Queens Airplane Company in the Bronx. With previous experience as a mechanic and car salesman, he became a fairly proficient pilot with practice.

In 1916, Clyde gained access to a rent-free space with one condition – the new aircraft must be named after a particular car model called “Jones-Six”. Clyde agreed and ended up painting the name on the underside of its wings.

In 1917, Clyde built the Comet. However, World War I impacted production, stopping sales and production altogether. Most critical parts and supplies became essential for war use, pushing civilian aircraft production to the backburner. After coming to terms with his failed venture, he returned to a job in farming.

In 1925, wealthy businessmen Walter Beech and Lloyd Stearman offered Cessna a chance to build and produce more aircraft. They teamed up to create Travel Air Manufacturing Company with Cessna as its president. After becoming frustrated with his role as president, he teamed up with Victor Roos to create the Cessna-Roos Company. His partner Roos left the business shortly after for another job.

Cessna had successful sales through the business’s A and D series, but tough times hit an all-time low in 1931. Because of this, Cessna had to close down his company once again.

Two years later in 1933, Cessna’s nephew Dwane Wallace earned his degree in Aeronautical Engineering from Wichita University. Working for Beech Aircraft Company, he convinced executives to allow his uncle to reopen his shop and continue making aircraft. At the time, Beech occupied a small section of Cessna’s former factory.

After Cessna’s retirement in 1936, he allowed the sale of all of his shares to his nephews, Dwane and Dwight Wallace. Under the Wallace Brothers’ leadership, Cessna designed and built its first twin-engine aircraft in 1938. Before World War II, government demands from the U.S. and Canada poured in for aircraft to be used for military training. From there, Cessna’s business expanded quickly, embracing its newfound success.

Producing The Caravan

The Caravan is an unpressurized turboprop single that began its initial development in 1981. Cessna sold its first Caravan to an Alaskan company in 1985.

Cessna’s Caravan model 208A was popular with Federal Express (FedEx), allowing Cessna to increase production and welcome its Cargomaster and Super Cargomaster to the series. Sales for the Caravan remained steady with expectations of delivering its 2,500th Caravan in 2015 under the ownership of Textron Aviation.

What makes the Caravan’s interior design unique is the addition of a polyurethane synthetic material with the same look and feel as leather. It’s easy to clean and has 5x the durability of traditional leather. Making this change removes 50 pounds from the aircraft’s interior.

Country of Origin: America

Below are the average statistics for the Cessna Caravan 208 (2023).

Maximum Speed: 186 ktas
Maximum Range: 1,070 nm
Maximum Occupants: 10-14
Range Of Years Manufactured: 1985-2023
Total Aircraft Build: 3,000+
Registered Aircraft: 833
Useful Load: 3,305 lbs
Average Sale Value: $1,561,905
Average Days On Market For Sale: 51
VREF Demand Rating: Visit VREF Online

Operational Resources

Operations Manual

Maintenance Document

Cessna Caravan Resources

Local Resources

Textron Aviation Inc. (Domestic and International Service Centers)
Cessna Flyer Association

Manufacturer

Cessna

Insurance

Cessna Caravan 208 Details

The following is information about the latest Cessna Caravan 208 model.

Interior

The Caravan’s interior flexible seating has commuter and club seating. Passengers can sit comfortably in highly ergonomic seating upholstered with a leather-like fabric. Enhanced sight line cabin windows offer a wide outer view even when seated. This aircraft is available in 2 clean color schemes using shades of black and khaki for a contrasting look and just khaki for a monochromatic look. The Caravan is equipped with a Garmin® G1000® NXi avionics suite.

Exterior

This versatile turboprop has a 3-blade McCauley propeller and is powered by a Pratt and Whitney Canada Model PT6A-114A engine. Large, rough-field tires and rugged landing gear assist with operating on coarse terrain. Wide-load cargo space offers an extra 84 cubic feet of storage.

Avionics

GDU 1050A Pilot and Copilot Primary Flight Displays (PFD)
GDU 1050A Multifunction Display (MFD)
GDL® 60 Datalink
GI 275 Electronic Standby Indicator
GDC 72 Dual Air Data Computer (ADC)
GEA 71B Engine/Airframe Unit
GRS 79 Dual Attitude and Heading Reference System (AHRS)
GMA 1360D Dual Audio System with Bluetooth Capability and 3D Audio
GTX 335R ADS-B Out Transponder
Garmin® Relative Terrain/Obstacles
Garmin® FliteCharts
GTX 345DR In/Out Capability
Garmin® SafeTaxi
Integrated VFR Sectional Charts
IFR High and Low Altitude Charts with Auto/Day/Night Modes
KN-63 DME
Wireless Database Uploads and Flight Plan Transfers

Optional Equipment

Enhanced Automatic Flight Control System
Garmin® GSR 56 Iridium Transceiver
TAWS-A
KRA 405B Radar Altimeter
GWX™ 8000
Synthetic Vision Technology
Taxi Routing

Specifications

Configuration: Single Engine, Turboprop, Fixed

Max Seats: 10

Max Take-Off Weight: 8,000 lbs.

Cruise: 184 kts

Range: 1,115 nm

Takeoff Run: 970 ft.

Landing Roll: 645 ft.

Wing Span: 52 ft. 1 in.

Length: 37 ft. 7 in.

Height: 14 ft. 2 in.

Takeoff Run (50 ft.): 2,500 ft.

Cessna Caravan 208 Models

The following are all variations of Cessna’s Caravan 208.

208 Caravan

Cessna’s first production variant has a PT6A-114 turboprop engine and seating for up to nine passengers. The landplane variant was type-approved in 1984, and the seaplane version received its type approval in 1986. You can modify earlier Caravan 208 models to use the higher-powered PT6A-114A but have restricted operating limits.

208 Caravan 675

Marketing designation for the 208 Caravan with a higher-powered PT6A-114A engine.

208A Cargomaster

40 pure-cargo versions of the Caravan were produced with Federal Express (FedEx) with all 208A aircraft serialized as 208 models.

208B Grand Caravan

Officially named the 208B Caravan but marketed as the Grand Caravan, the 208B is longer and has a more extended cabin than the 208. The 208B is powered by a PT6A-114A engine. Originally certified as a 2-seater cargo version in 1986, it received its 11-seater passenger aircraft certification in 1989.

208B Grand Caravan EX

Certified in December 2012 this variant has a more powerful 867 horsepower Pratt and Whitney Canada PT6A-140 that improves the rate of climb by 38%. In early October 2019, after just under 6 years in production, Cessna delivered 500 Grand Caravan EXs.

208B Super Cargomaster

FedEx purchased 260 of this particular variant, using a marketing name for what is otherwise simply 208B.

Caravan Amphibian

A 208 or 208B with either Wipaire 8000 or 8750 floats and retractable landing gear for water landings or land operations.

Soloy Pathfinder 21

This is a single example of a twin-engined stretched fuselage aircraft developed by the Soloy Corporation with two PT6D-114A engines mounted side-by-side. However, this project was abandoned because it was unable to meet certification requirements.

850 Caravan

This variant is a 208 with an 850-horsepower Honeywell TPE331-12JR-701S engine, installed by Aero Twin Inc.

950 Grand Caravan

208B with a 1,000 horsepower Honeywell TPE331-12JR-704AT engine, installed by Aero Twin Inc.

Blackhawk Caravan

208 and 208B conversion to 850-horsepower.

Supervan 900

208B with an 850-horsepower Honeywell TPE331-12JR engine, installed by Texas Turbine Conversions, Inc.

XP42A Upgrade

This upgraded variant is a 208B with an 850-horsepower Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-42A engine, installed by Blackhawk.

U-27A

United States Department of Defense designation for the Cessna 208.

C-16

United States Department of Defense designation for the proposed variant to be used by the United States Army in El Salvador and Nicaragua during the 1980s.

C-98

The C-98 is a Brazilian Air Force designation for the standard U-27.

AC-208 Combat Caravan

This Caravan with wing hardpoints is an ISTAR version built by ATK and armed with Hellfire missiles used by the Iraqi Air Force. The AC-208 made its combat debut in January 2014.

The Lebanese Air Force requested a new AC-208 and conversions for the 208s already in operation.

MC-208 Guardian

The MC-208 Guardian is a multi-role aircraft built on the Cessna Caravan. It’s capable of performing aerial surveillance, close air support, precision strikes, and more all in one mission without the need for reconfiguration. This eliminates the need to deploy and operate multiple aircraft. It was selected as one of 5 finalists for the United States Special Operations Command’s Armed Overwatch program (USSOCOM).