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A New Home For MFI! - Fort
Pierce, Florida
The Dream Realized:
A Hangar Large Enough For 3
DC-3's,
 
Indoor
Maintenance, Repair Oversight, & Paint Booth,
  
Warehouse, Cargo Loading, &
Mail Room,
  
Spacious Offices & Break
Room,
 
Convenient Passenger Check-In & Comfortable
Waiting Area,
  
ALL Under One Roof! Praise The Lord!
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Upgrading For The 21st Century!
Click on the cockpit, wing-area windows, or cargo bay to see more!
The World's Most Reliable Aircraft Teamed
With the Most Reliable Engine
Thirty years ago, Missionary Flights upgraded to our first
Douglas DC-3, and it was a BIG step of faith. By the same faith we claimed
our second DC-3, then a third and fourth. Finally, in January of 2003,
Missionary Flights purchased our first turbine DC-3. After a few weeks of
maintenance inspections and FAA approval, the turbine DC-3 was placed into
regular service to Haiti and the Dominican Republic in June, 2003. For the past
four years, the aircraft has proven to be an extremely reliable and valuable
tool for MFI. We have transported several thousand missionary passengers and
literally tons of baggage, cargo, and mail to the mission field. The turbine
DC-3 is leading the force in the MFI service to missions. Our other
standard DC-3 aircraft continue to back up the turbine DC-3 on its weekly
flights to Haiti and the DR, but the turbine DC-3 has certainly picked up the
pace in keeping missions supplied.
Turbo Power
The difference is obvious from this angle!
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The original DC-3 airplane was designed to operate daily out of
unimproved airfields with little maintenance support. For this reason,
several companies have converted the original DC-3's by adding a 40" section to
the cabin and installing two modern and proven Pratt & Whitney PT-6 turbo-prop
engines. This effectively breathes new life into this workhorse.
Fully loaded the turbine DC-3 climbs to cruise altitude within minutes and
allows for faster groundspeeds, larger cargo capacity, and greatly
reduces the maintenance required for each flight.
The turbo-prop engines are a vast maintenance and performance
improvement over the original DC-3 radial engines. These airplanes can
routinely carry up to 10,000 pounds of cargo, a 27% increase in load capacity
while averaging close to 40 knots (46 MPH) faster while only burning 30% more
fuel.
These airplanes are "zero" timed by completely overhauling the
airframe while adding a 40" airframe "plug" or extension to the cabin area.
Modern navigation and communication radios are installed, and of course the
turbo-prop engines and associated systems are installed. As you can see
from the chart below, there is quite a difference between the two airplanes!
Aircraft Comparisons
|
Turbo-Prop DC-3 |
Douglas DC-3 |
| Engines |
Pratt & Whitney PT6A-65AR |
Pratt & Whitney Twin Wasp 1830-75 |
| Time Between Overhauls (TBO) |
6,000 Flight hours |
1,800 Flight hours |
| Maximum Takeoff Weight |
26,900 pounds |
26,900 pounds |
| Maximum Useful Load |
11,800 pounds |
8,620 pounds |
| Maximum Useable Fuel |
1,030 gallons |
804 gallons |
| Maximum Rate of Climb |
1,560 feet per minute |
1,200 feet per minute |
| Certified Ceiling |
24,000 feet |
20,000 feet |
| Normal Cruising Speed (12,000 ft) |
195 knots |
155 knots |
| Fuel Flow (Normal Cruise) |
140 GPH /905 PPH |
110 GPH /660 PPH |
| Maximum Range |
1,341 nautical miles |
1,132 nautical miles |
| Maximum Payload (zero fuel) |
10,300 |
8,520 |
| Max Passengers |
24 |
24 |
We are excited about this new era in the history of MFI,
and the Lord's provision for Missionary Flights!
MISSIONARY FLIGHTS INTERNATIONAL
3170 Airmans Drive
Fort Pierce, FL 34946
(772) 462-2395
Fax: (772) 462-2397
E-mail:
MFI@missionaryflights.org
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