Quest Kodiak Missionary Flying Heavy Hauler

[Boy10893]

where can i buy plane cassna anyone can help me

[pathyskeeter]

I was comparing the Kodiak against strips where 206's run into problems, ie sidesloped, wet runways, gravel, and muddy strips. Guess it's pointless to try to compare either the Kodiak or 206 against an airplane that actually excels at those strips. ie Helio. There is still going to ba a void at 20% or more of the strips where Helios routinely operates, as the margin of safety will be minimal for the Kodiak.

[Thesupersmith79]

What a great airplane!!! Hopefully I will be blessed enough to fly one in a couple of years through MAF

[JIMMYLINE]

I love this airplane! But, will never own one because I don't make that much money! Why does flying have to be so expensive??? This baby will set you back $1.1 million.

[TheChevyman21]

@JIMMYLINE if you get it used maybe 1.1mil but the new ones with floats will set you back 2.3mil i saw it at the 2011 Sun-N-Fun fly in it was a amazing airplane

[i4mcon]

1 in 10 go to mission groups, but the other 9 go to drug dealers and warlords to access those same remote areas and undo the good work.

[pathyskeeter]

It's STOL up to what weight?

[cthelder]

A Caravan is better on longer wel prepared runways for Commuter or freight operations. I fly one for a FedEx feeder. Great for what it was designed for but it's not a true STOL airraft. If I needed something to get out of 1000ft runways I would get a Kodiak or a Porter . Kodiak is also a great plane for the private owner who flies with 6 passengers or less most of the time. Caravan is overkill in that case plus the Kodiak is faster. Both great planes for their specific mission.

[ryanapem]

So many people here are commenting on how the Kodiak is simply a small Caravan. Before making any more comments like that please do some research! They are different airplanes, built for different rolls. As far as the Kodiak's performance, the only airplane I have ever flown with similar performance is the Pilatus PC-6 Porter. The Porter however is $500,000 more and 50 knots slower. The Kodiak is a phenomenal airplane and will do wonderful things!

[hjz000]

A 3/4 version baby Caravan that can do 200kts+ and T/O and land in 700ft or less for $1.5M- will be an ultimate toy. I just bought a nice book on Caravan, "Caravan, Cessna's Swiss Army Knife with Wings!". Not the best written but has a lot of information. For example, the cabin height of Kodiak is actuall higher than Caravan. So the total cabin volume is similar even though it is more than 4ft shorter.

[lgday]

with a tricycle landing gear i can't see this airplane operating in any really rough fields. also without a ski option the aircraft seems to be limited to more benign climates.

[pathyskeeter]

After flying the Caravan, Helio Super Courier, C-180, Turbine Tailwheel BE18H, Super Cub, Cub, C-140, C-170B, Cub, Legend Cub, most of the Piper series single and twin, etc., I am hard pressed to put my confidence in a nose wheel especially when operating on rough gravel strips or on wet grass.

[straighttailpilot]

@pathyskeeter it depends how rough. we all know the kodiak will not land where a 36 inch tire super cub will. you have to think about the kodiak as a mission plane just like the cub it is made for one single purpose and im sure kodiak guys didnt think about landing on a gravel bar LOL!

[Kzanol69]

I find it interesting that Quest has tested the Kodiak on floats, but they never gave us any performance figures for water operation, anyone else think the stall speed is too high for a floatplane? I think the beaver and otter are going to be around for another 50 years yet

[WarSawGS]

It's kinds funny how people are on here talking bad about this plane. I work at quest and the Caravan is NOTHING LIKE THE KODIAK. There are alot of features on the Kodiak that the Caravan can not touch, Look at some of the video's on Youtube, The Kodiak has taken off in as short as 290 feet, yes it was empty but lets see the Caravan do that. thats the only thing I haft to say, Dont bash on a plane that is ment to do good in this world.

[hjz000]

As we know aircraft design is all about compromise. It is harder for me to believe that you can make some improvement over a Cessna without some other compromise. I'm interested in knowing what are the particular features Kodiak has and why they are not available on the Caravan?

[straighttailpilot]

@WarSawGS I agree. caravan is like a fat 206. its just not made for the bush!

[hjz000]

It looks with full fuel, Kodiak carries more with 1260lbs vs 1090 for the Caravan 675; flies further 1075 vs 946 nm; take off/land in much shorter distance; same cruise at around 190kts; and cheaper to buy and burns less fuel per hour. So it beats Caravan in every espect.

Of course, these all based on the published specs. Hope it will hold true in real world.

It will be an ultimate toy for people with some money.

[eagle4528]

hey guys, quest didn't set out to copy the caravan at all. after doing extensive research they found that design was best suited for the intentions of what the airplane was being designed to do.  if you want to haul a bunch of weight and use up 1200ft of runway the caravan is a better choice. but if you're in a jungle in central or south america and only have at best just under 1000 ft the caravan is a life saver. right now they use c-206's for this and they can't haul as much as a kodiak.

[pope007]

cessna caravan watch out!!!!!!

[BuBuTheButterfly]

Cessna Caravan move over.

[badzwa1]

this is the type of plane mission fields have been waiting for! Can't to get one for our mission!

[j331772]

I love Cessna, but get me one of these!

[leahyav2007]

Congratulations to all the folks at Quest! So many people have been following the progress & praying for you all. I am looking forward to many a long trip in the Kodiak. May Quest prosper & the Kodiak serve well...

[cldbstr]

The amount they copied from the Cessna Caravan is staggering. There is nothing unique about this aircraft. Give me the original aircraft anytime.

[greenhelmetcam]

@cldbstr

idiot. You don't know JACK. Different airplanes designed for different missions.

[chicagoguy7]

This product is aimed for non-profit organizations. It'll definately beat Caravan. As time goes forward, more & more non-profit organizations will buy Kodiak, rather than buying Caravan.

[HorrorVG]

with what money? kodiak costs over a million I think.

[gdesrosier]

Thats pretty cheap for a turbo prop.

[Kzanol69]

I've seen Caravans eat up mile long lakes empty... I bet the Kodiak won't do that!

[kandresq]

The Caravan cant do what the Kodiak can, speaking of mission flights. Period!

[CaptMoo]

True! Praise God for the Kodiak! Its gonna help a tons of ppl!

[techman6]

It's cheaper sure, but a Cessna Caravan 675 can carry 14 people plus more weight. The Caravan 675 can be had in a luxury or cargo variations or with floats, can take off in under 1200 ft. has Garmin G1000 panel and the weeping wing anti-ice, plus worldwide customer support. It will probably hold its value better. Unless you are broke or need to get airborne in 750 feet, you will do better with a Caravan. The Kodiak is pretty shameless knockoff if you ask me.

[leahyav2007]

You should do your research on the "why" before you go knocking the aircraft. Having flown all the Caravans as well as the Kodiak, I like the Caravan, but I can see why Quest has made the Kodiak...more than for just the "bottom line"

[striderdevco]

This thing will eat a caravan for lunch and never look back. Caravan can't touch this machine and for that, Cessna should have worries!

[comradeboris]

its like a mini cessna grand caravan....