Continental Aerospace Technologies has announced a Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) diesel engine retrofit for a bush flying workhorse, aimed at operating in some of the most remote locations globally. The company aims to fit the CD-300 Jet-A engine to a demonstration aircraft by 2025 and is considering similar adaptations for other aircraft that utilize 300-horsepower engines.
"We hope to have a demo aircraft at Oshkosh next year," said CEO Karen Hong.
This marks Continental's initial venture into the retrofit market for the CD-300, an engine currently powering Diamond’s DA50 high-performance single. The reduced fuel consumption and maintenance costs are expected to offset the higher price of the compression combustion engine, providing operators with an alternative to 100LL fuel amidst decreasing avgas availability. The engine and adaptation kit will be priced at approximately $300,000, with more aircraft models anticipated to receive STCs in the coming months.