Sandpoint, Idaho-based Tamarack Aerospace has submitted a claim to the National Aeronautic Association (NAA) and the European Federation Aeronautique International (FAI) for two city-pair flight records.
The first—a 15 October, non-stop 2,033-nautical-mile flight from Spokane, Washington (GEG) to Orlando, Florida (MCO) in a King Air 350 retrofitted with Tamarack’s innovative Performance SMARTWING technology—was completed in a brisk 7-hours and 46-minutes.
The second flight—a one-stop, 1770-nautical-mile, westbound (against the wind) odyssey from Orlando, Florida (MCO) to Henderson, Nevada (HND) via Albuquerque, New Mexico (ABQ) undertaken in the selfsame, retrofitted King Air—was clocked at an impressive 8-hours and 8-minutes.
Tamarack founder and CEO Nick Guida co-piloted both trips.
Mr. Guida posits that the record claims for the two King Air 350 flights illustrate the fuel savings, increased range, stability, smoothness of flight, and increased structural life aircraft operators can expect from Tamarack’s Performance SMARTWING.
Differing from conventional, passive King Air winglets, Tamarack’s Performance SMARTWING technology automatically controls wing bending during turbulence and other inflight events by effectively “turning off the winglets”—thereby alleviating wing-loading. This is accomplished via load-sensors and a camber surface capable of responding to system inputs in fractions of a second. The Active Winglet/load-alleviation system is fully automatic, requires no pilot action, and functions independently of other aircraft systems. What’s more, installation of Tamarack’s Performance SMARTWING requires no aircraft structural reinforcement.
Mr. Guida remarked: “The military is especially interested in our increased range and loiter time for Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) missions for smaller turbo props and large transport and our upgraded King Air’s boast features that additionally allow takeoffs and landings in high/hot conditions. Business aircraft equipped with our technology provide those benefits plus the important peace of mind concerning safety and stability.”
In addition to actualizing his company’s immediate aspiration to secure FAA certification for its King Air SMARTWING retrofit, Mr. Guida looks forward to adapting Tamarack’s proprietary technologies to narrow-body airliners—particularly Airbus’s A320 family of aircraft. Guida sets forth that up to three-percent of total worldwide aircraft carbon emissions are attributable to narrow-body airliners—which constitute approximately seventy-percent of the global airline fleet.
“We’re really excited about addressing the need to make those planes more efficient,” Mr. Guida asserted.
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