Dayton, Ohio (Nov. 15, 2016) — Woolpert has added a Reims F406 Caravan II to its fleet of aircraft to more efficiently and effectively perform on both high-altitude and low-altitude aerial data acquisition and address client demand.
“In recent years, Woolpert has frequently been tasked with two divergent missions—high-altitude imagery and lidar collections, and low-altitude bathymetric lidar collections,” said Brian Albers, Woolpert’s chief pilot. “While both of these missions are different, we’ve found they can be addressed with one aircraft.”
The nonpressurized, twin-turboprop F406 was built by Reims Aviation in cooperation with Cessna. It was purchased by Woolpert this month and joins Woolpert’s fleet of six aircraft.
This acquisition will allow the firm to be more efficient and effective for its many imagery and lidar collections in support of federal, state and local government clients.
Jonas Svoboda, Woolpert’s aerial acquisition discipline leader, said the F406 has more electrical capacity than most similarly-sized aircraft, providing an excellent platform that can handle multiple sensors. It also produces less vibration than a piston-driven aircraft, which will allow for more precise lidar and imagery collection and offer more horsepower overall.
Updated internal environmental controls, the fact that the plane doesn’t need to be pressurized, its large cargo capacity, and the increased speed and efficiency it provides for data collections will help keep the firm competitive.
“The F406 can do both ends of the imagery and lidar collection spectrum more quickly and yield the highest quality product,” Svoboda said. “It positions us well for the future.”
About Woolpert
Woolpert is a national architecture, engineering and geospatial (AEG) firm that delivers value to clients by strategically blending engineering excellence with leading-edge technology and geospatial applications. With a dynamic R&D department, Woolpert works with inventive business partners like Google; operates a fleet of planes, sensors and unmanned aerial systems (UAS); and continually pushes industry boundaries by working with advanced water technologies, asset management, Building Information Modeling (BIM) and sustainable design. Woolpert’s mission is to help its clients progress—and become more progressive. For over 100 years and with 23 offices across the United States, Woolpert serves the needs of federal, state and local governments; private and public companies and universities; energy and transportation departments; and the United States Armed Forces. The firm currently is doing business in all 50 states and in five foreign countries. For more information, visit woolpert.com or call 937-531-1258.