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The Cessna 310 broke new ground in general aviation when it appeared in 1953. It remained in production for nearly thirty years and nearly 6,000 were built. This book reviews the types origins, competitors and development, including the many variants produced. Detail includes comments on ownership and operation, visual differences between individual models and after-market upgrades. The book continues with the closely-related Cessna 320 and the later "cabin class" twins, the Cessna 340, 335 and 303. A second section examines the larger cabin twins in the Cessna 400 series from the Cessna 411 to the turboprop Cessna 425, 441 Conquest II and Reims Cessna F406 Caravan II. This family includes nine distinct types of aircraft and the section also includes some amusing tales about flying the Cessna 404 Titan. A comprehensive guide is provided to allow the easy recognition of the different aircraft and sub-variants within the Cessna 400 series.
About the author
Ron Smith is a British aeronautical engineer, author, photographer and historian. He was Head of Future Projects at Westland Helicopters Ltd and has just retired from BAE Systems. He learned to fly in 1978 and has owned a number of light aircraft.
Summary
The Cessna 310 broke new ground in general aviation when it appeared in 1953. It remained in production for nearly thirty years and nearly 6,000 were built. This book reviews the type’s origins, competitors, and development, including the many variants produced. Detail includes comments on ownership and operation, visual differences between individual models, and after-market upgrades. The book continues with the closely-related Cessna 320 and the later “cabin class” twins, the Cessna 340, 335, and 303. A second section examines the larger cabin twins in the Cessna 400 series from the Cessna 411 to the turboprop Cessna 425, 441 Conquest II, and Reims Cessna F406 Caravan II. This family includes nine distinct types of aircraft and the section also includes some amusing tales about flying the Cessna 404 Titan. A comprehensive guide is provided to allow the easy recognition of the different aircraft and sub-variants within the Cessna 400 series.
Additional text
There is more in the book than simply how the type developed the summary of features on the 400 Series that aid identification is welcome. As someone previously engaged in aspects of aircraft design, I could not help wondering about the introduction of dihedral to the tailplane, and why it became necessary to raise it halfway up the fin, presumably something to do with improving an aspect of the flight handling quality. Also, I particularly enjoyed reading of the exploits, some very amusing, of an air taxi pilot in the Cessna 404 Titan. This book makes an excellent addition to ones aeronautical bookshelf, and I thoroughly recommend it. - George Done
