De Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver
The de Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver is one of the most celebrated bush planes ever built, designed from the outset around the needs of Canadian wilderness pilots rather than conventional airline routes. Its short-field performance and rugged construction let it operate from lakes on floats, snow on skis, or rough gravel strips on wheels, often all with the same airframe fitted with different landing gear. It became so associated with remote flying that it's sometimes called the 'pickup truck of the skies'. Decades after production ended, hundreds remain in active service across Canada, Alaska, and other remote regions worldwide.

Did you know?
The DHC-2 Beaver was designed around Canadian bush pilots' needs, able to swap wheels, skis or floats on the same airframe.
Specifications
| Length | 9.2 m (30 ft) |
|---|---|
| Wingspan | 14.6 m (48 ft) |
| Height | 2.7 m (9 ft) |
| Maximum passengers | 6 |
| Persons on board | 8 |
| Maximum take-off weight | 2.3 t |
| Range | 455 NM (843 km) |
| Maximum speed | 143 kt (265 km/h) |
| Stall speed | 39 kt (72 km/h) |
| Service ceiling | 17,900 ft (5,456 m) |
| Optimum ceiling | 15,000 ft (4,572 m) |
| Rate of climb | 920 ft/min (4.7 m/s) |
| Take-off distance | 491 m (1,611 ft) |
| Landing distance | 305 m (1,001 ft) |
| Fuel capacity | 520 l |
| Engines | 1x Pratt & Whitney R-985 |
| Units built | 1,657 |
Curated by CatchFlights from manufacturer documents, ICAO Doc 8643 and reference works; values are left out where no source could confirm them. Sources are listed on our credits page.
In CatchFlights
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