The Dominican Air Force (FAD) informed that it would assemble, at its facilities, the Dulus TP-75 single-engine aircraft.
Although the original model on which it is based was not indicated, it is clear from the images published that it is the experimental military version of the Tucano Réplica sports plane, a product of the Italian firm Flying Legend.
The aircraft, sporting the FAD’s paint scheme, made a demonstration flight on 17 February at the San Isidro Air Base under the command of a pilot from the manufacturer and carrying on board the commander general of the air component, Major General Carlos Febrillet Rodriguez.
According to official information, the name assigned to the Dominican model is Dulus, which means “palmchat (Dulus dominicus)” and carries the identification TP-75.
Otherwise, the flight demonstration was part of the events programmed to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Dominican Air Force.
RECONNAISSANCE AIRCRAFT
Although the Air Force has not specified the use to which the aircraft will be put, it is understood that this new acquisition refers to the “ten reconnaissance and surveillance aircraft” announced last October by President Luis Abinader Corona, as Infodefensa.com reported.
To support this assumption, the prototype presented, in addition to the paint scheme, which is identical to that of the Embraer EMB-314 / A-29 Super Tucano, shows on the fuselage the emblem of the Combat Squadron, to which these FAD aircraft are also attached.
THE TUCANO REPLICA
The Tucano-R Experimental is the recently developed military version of the sport aircraft developed by Flying Legend, which is a replica -70% of its size- of the Embraer EMB-312 Tucano.
It is an aircraft of metallic construction (aluminum), with tandem seats for two crew members and retractable gear.
The version chosen by the FAD is equipped with a turbo-charged Rotax 915 iS engine with a four-blade propeller, which allows it to reach a speed of 287 km/h and a maximum range of 1,166 km.
With information from Infodefensa