Cargo door

[appleseed]

Anybody ever seen/operated a cargo door equipped commander? The 680Fl documentation mentions three Courserliners with 47" door on the right side. I believe I have seen pics of pressurize TCs with the same door.

In the vein of fantasies about putting TCs back into production - and how they outperform all the existing planes on offer. One of the very appealing features about Pilati and TBMs are those big cargo doors. People like to bring stuff. As usual though, Ted was already there. Decades ago.

I wonder how they did from a maintenance perspective. Was the door actually in a useful place? I remember from flying part 135 cargo that having a 50" door that was forklift accessible with a standard 48" pallet was a whole different class of plane than say, a loose load Baron.

[JimC]

I've seen one piston commander with a cargo door on the *left.* I can't remember which one, but it was a doubled main entry door with two panels and hinges on each vertical edge, as opposed to the single panel horizontally hinged turbine cargo doors. My best guess is that it was a 680FL.

[donv]

There were a few 900s (and maybe a 1000?) with a big factory cargo door. Bruce sold one not long ago.

The door is on the right side of the fuselage and hinges up. I have only seen one once in person, and that was about 30 years ago, but they do exist. FYI, I think it was built that way, not a mod or STC.

[Bruce Byerly]

There were a few 900s (and maybe a 1000?) with a big factory cargo door. Bruce sold one not long ago.

The door is on the right side of the fuselage and hinges up. I have only seen one once in person, and that was about 30 years ago, but they do exist. FYI, I think it was built that way, not a mod or STC.

That’s good old 77HS.  I think I’ve touched all 6 delivered with the big door.  I have data somewhere as there were a couple more converted?  We operated and sold N3NT most recently.  The door is neat but, like anything mechanical, can be a pain in some ways. As I recall, the Canadian air ambulance Grenfell used it frequently and racked up over 18,000 hours on the plane as of 15 years ago and which wound up in Bolivia. Haven’t seen it since.  Edelbrock’s 1000 sadly went to Africa after Vic passed away.

[JMA]

Always wondered what happened to the Edelbrock 1000.  I hear 51DM is up for sale Bruce?  2.4 is the rumor I heard.

[JimC]

It was a 680FL, but I can't find the picture any more. I'm pretty sure I saw it in "for sale" photos and the original ad is long since gone. I've only found this reference:

"Three 'Courser Liner' Commanders also were manufactured with a cabin door that featured a double-size opening, 47 x 45 inches, to enable loading of freight."

https://flightlevelsonline.com/2016/looking-back-model-680fl-grand-commander/

Here's a copy of Bruce's ad for N3NT (with pictures) from a while back:

https://www.hangar67.com/aircraft/1983-twin-commander-900/18933

[Bruce Byerly]

Here we find a turbo commander salvaged last year. So far BER that I regret getting involved but we saved a lot of parts for other planes. I did also find a 1947 Studebaker M15 truck that is consuming storage space in case anyone wants that.

[donv]

680V?

That door conversion certainly looks interesting... any idea who did it?

[appleseed]

Wow! Thanks for the great picture Bruce.

[donv]

I didn't even notice the pilot door! I wonder if that thing was still pressurized?

I'm vaguely recalling my line service days from the early 1980s when we had a 680V freighter that used to come in regularly... I don't remember a door like this, but I do remember discussion about how they flew it unpressurized.

[Bruce Byerly]

C’mon guys. How bout that M15!??!?


No - absolutely not pressurized after freighter conversion.  That must have included the pilot door.  And the logs showed more engine issues that you could shake a stick at. The 331 really evolved and progressed into the most reliable engine in the world but it didn’t happen overnight!

[donv]

Century or -43?

[Bruce Byerly]

43A’s as I recall. I don’t even remember ever seeing those in real life before.

The owner was a dreamer. He built his own beautiful hill top paved runway and bought that Commander, flew it a bit. went broke, never flew it again and then died.  His house and property repossessed.  His very gracious widow looked out over the beautiful property and commented that “dreams didn’t always come true.”

It was sad.  I sent her more money than it was worth, gave the engines to an AOPA rep in exchange for cutting the plane up, and hauled off the Studebaker as if I needed that project. 

[donv]

Between the Commander, the Studebaker, the boat, and probably lots of stuff we can't see, it looks like he was a man with a lot of projects.

[JimC]

You could always list it here...

https://studebakerdriversclub.com/?page_id=24831&awpcp_category_id=23