Air Tractor AT-802

The Air Tractor AT-802 is an agricultural aircraft that may also be adapted into fire-fighting or armed versions. It first flew in the United States in October 1990 and is manufactured by Air Tractor Inc. The AT-802 carries a chemical hopper between the engine firewall and the cockpit. In the U.S., it is considered a Type III SEAT, or Single Engine Air Tanker.
Development.
In its standard configuration, the aircraft utilizes conventional landing gear (two main wheels and a tail wheel). However, a number of aircraft have been converted to the Fire Boss aerial firefighting configuration, which utilizes Wipaire 10000 amphibious floats, so that it can land on a traditional runway or on water. The Fire Boss can scoop water from a lake or river for use on a fire. In addition to the standard fuselage-mounted retardant tank, the Fire Boss can have optional foam tanks in the floats. Operations with floats installed have been shown to produce a shorter and narrower retardant drop pattern than wheeled AT-802s.
Armed version.
In response to the United States Air Force's LAAR program and the growing requirement for light counter-insurgency aircraft, Air Tractor developed an armed model, the AT-802U, in 2008, with engine and cockpit armor, a bulletproof windscreen, self-sealing fuel tanks, and structural reinforcements for the carriage of of payload. A reinforced wing spar was certified for 12,000 hours of flight time, and the AT-802U was displayed in 2009 at the Paris Air Show.
The AT-802 has also been used in counter-drug operations in the USSOUTHCOM AOR by the U.S. Department of State as a delivery vehicle for herbicides and defoliants over narcotics production facilities.
Ten AT-802i were converted by IOMAX USA into an armed configuration with Roketsan Cirit 2.75" rockets and guided bombs for the UAE Air Force. The UAE operated them until November 2015 when they were replaced by the first three of 24 Archangels on order from Iomax. The Archangel is based on a similar cropduster airframe, that of the Thrush Model 660, however to create the Archangel the basic Model 660 undergoes a much more extensive rebuild in the course of its militarization. Six of the UAE AT-802i were transferred to the Jordanian Air Force. with a further three being transferred to the Yemeni Government Forces where they have been used in the 2015 Yemeni Civil War. Reports place Emirati aircraft in Libya flown by contract pilots.
In January 2017, the US State Department approved a deal for twelve AT-802 aircraft for the Kenya Defence Forces, although as of June 2017 a contract for the proposed sale had not been signed.
Operators.
Civil.
The aircraft is popular with aerial application operators.