Cessna 303 Crusader

although on long trips, I've suffered from cramping in my right leg. I think I subconsciously tension the muscles in my right leg to keep from edging off the narrow seat. A half-door on the right side of the cockpit officially func- tions as an emergency exit; unofficial- ly, it's handy for opening to obtain', relieffrom a broiling cockpit. Visibility out the large, wraparound front wind- shield is great. The Crusader I'm used to flying is probably typical of many in the field. A light twin with heauy-twin aspirations (above). The distinctive cruciform tail is one of the Crusader's identifying features. The horizontal stabilizer rides up and out of wing wake and prop wash. It is the same airplane today, with the same factory interior and panel as when it left Cessna's Pawnee Division on the East side of Wichita about 10 years ago. The interior is beginning to show its age, and'the paint is chipped or worn in spots (it lives outside at hangar-poor Frederick Municipal), but it still is a handsome, inviting presence on the ramp. Its larger-airplane features notwith- standing, the Crusader still is a light twin. Max ramp weight is 5,175 pounds, about the same as a late- model Piper Aztec and several hun- dred pounds less than a Beech Baron 58-both of which appear to be small- er than the Crusader. The empty weight of 32V is 3,718 pounds, for a useful load of 1,457 pounds. The two integral wing tanks hold 153 gallons of usable fuel, or about five hours of flying with an hour's reserve. That's generous, but it comes at the expense of payload. Filling the tanks leaves 539 pounds for people and bags. You'd have to sacrifice at least an hour's worth of fuel capacity before even thinking about putting four people aboard. Like most new-airplane pro- jects, the Crusader was intended to weigh less and carry more than it does. When Cessna's objective shifted from developing a light-light twin to a cabin-class 31 OISkymaster replace- ment, the Crusader began to acquire the accouterments of Cessna's 400- series twins, including interior finish- ings and heavier but quieter three- blade propellers. Gross weight was increased during the development program to preserve useful load, but the give-back had to come from some- where. It turned out to be single- engine performance. A fully loaded Crusader in climb configuration (maximum power, flaps and gear up, and cowl flap open on the good engine) will climb at a rate of about 250 feet per minute on one engine in sea-level, standard condi- tions, according to Cessna's specifica- tions. In truth, however, don't count on climbing out on one engine in a Cru- sader except at lower weights. Single- engine handling is helped by counter- rotating props, which means no critical engine, and a low 65-KIASVMCA- The Crusader spent an unusually long time in development, partly because the design objectives changed, and partly because some handling problems had to be worked out. Do a careful walkaround, and you'll notice a variety of small fences and other aerodynamic devices, all put there to cure handling ills. One problem was buffeting of the tail when landing with 0 to 10 degrees of flaps. The problem was traced to turbulent air cascading from the inboard por- tion of the wing and onto the under- side of the horizontal stabilizer. That caused loss of down-force. Drooping the wing leading edge inboard of the engine nacelles and adding so-called flow energizers and a wing-fuselage fairing help direct and smooth the air- flow over the wing and tail. A buzz felt when flaps were extended to an inter- mediate setting was cured by putting holes in the flaps beneath the engine nacelles. The rudder buzzed, too, AOPA PILOT· 75 Cessna 1'303 Crusader Current market value: $123,000-$] 89.000 Specifications Teledyne Continental TSIO/LTSIO-520-AE. 250 hp @2,400 rpm/32.5 inches Hecommended TUO 2,000 hr Propellers McCauley constant-speed, three-blade, 74-in diameter 30 ft 5 in 13 ft4 in 39ft .5 in 189.2 sq ft 27.2 Ib/sq ft 10.3Ib/hp 6 13ft 7 in 3 ft 11.8 in 3 ft 11.5 in 3,3281b 3,7181b 5,1751b 1,8471b 1,457Ib 9291b 5391b 5.1501b 5,OOOlb 4,8501b ] 55 gal (153 gal usable) 930 Ib (918 Ib usable) 9qt aft, 200 Ib; nose, 150 Ib; wing lockers, 120 Ib ea because of turbulent airflow at the vertical fin/horizontal tail juncture. A fairing took care of that. Then problems related to deicing equipment surfaced. Cessna began hearing from Crusader operators that, in a descent and with only a small amount of airframe ice, the tail would begin to buzz. Sometimes the airplane would even tuck or pitch down. It took many months, revocation of the air- plane's icing certification, and threat- ened legal action by owners before Cessna was able to identify the prob- lem and solve it. Field inspections showed that some airplanes had poor- ly installed boots and mis-rigged tail control surfaces. But the larger prob- lem was that, in certain descent con- figurations in light icing conditions, turbulent air spilling off the stabilizer- fin fairing was buffeting the rudder. In a sideslip, the dirty air could spread across the horizontal stabilizer and pull the elevator down slightly. The fix turned out to be fairly simple: Flow energizers similar to those on the wing were placed vertically and horizontally 65 KIAS more embarrassing problem: If bags were loaded into the aft cargo area and passengers then began boarding with no one in the cockpit, the airplane would fall on its tailcone. Despite the Crusader's beefy trail- ing-link main gear, I've never been able to consistently grease the airplane onto the runway as I feel I should be able to do. I blame it on sensitive pitch, the placement of the gear, and that high- mounted stabilizer. Other than those niggling takeoff and landing issues, the Crusader is a pleasure to fly. I find myself nodding in appreciation of the care that went into the design. For example, once the power has been adjusted to the cruise- climb setting of 2,400 rpm, 24 inches, and top of the green for fuel flow (95 pounds per hour, each engine), there is little else to do. The only action required to set up for maximum cruise power as recommended by Cessna (72 percent) is to close the cowl flaps and lean the mixture. I've found 32V's cruise perfor- mance to be close to book. Speeds range from 174 knots TAS at 9,000 feet msl to just shy of 200 knots TAS at 23,000 feet, the highest I have taken it. (It's certified to 25,000 feet.) Block-to-block fuel flow works out to 26 gallons per hour total. Another nice work-load-reduction feature of the Crusader is the high 175- KIASlimitation on gear and approach flaps extension. It makes it possible to do steep, cruise-airspeed descents or keep-your-speed-up approaches. Despite their 2,000-hour time between overhauls, the Crusader's engines were not fully mature when the airplane entered the market. Problems including oil leaks, fuel- flow quirks, and turbocharger and exhaust system heat and wear cropped up. A succession of service bulletins and airworthiness direc- tives addressed the problems. Faster cruise and better weight- carrying capability would be wel- comed on the Crusader. Indeed, Cessna had plans to bump the power up to 325 hp a side, but the market went away too soon. It's a shame Cessna didn't have an opportunity to build on the design philosophy that', went into the Crusader. Just as it was the progeny of earlier, larger Cessna twins, so too could the Crusader have set the standard for a new generation of smaller Cessna airplanes. 0 80 KIAS 77 KIAS 103 KIAS 93 KIAS 97 KIAS 148 KIAS 175 K1AS 210 KIAS 175 KIAS 150 KIAS 175 KIAS 210 KIAS 75 KIAS 66 KIAS 58 KIAS 20 kt ] ,480 fpm 250fpm Max demonstrated crosswind component Hate of climb, sea level Single-engine HOC, sea level Cruise speed/endurance w/45-min rsv, std fuel (fuel consumption) @ 72% power, best economy 181 kt/4.8 hI' 12,000 ft (27 gph!l62 pph) @ 69% power, best economy 197 kt/5 hr 24,000 ft (26 gph/I56 pph) Max operating altitude 25,OOOft Single-engine service ceiling 13,000ft l.anding distance over 50-ft obstacle 1,450 ft Landing distance, ground roll 820ft on the tail, vortex generators were glued to the fin, and the fin-stabilizer fairing was redesigned. All of the tweaking resulted in a good-handling airplane in most situa- tions. Pitch is a little sensitive, and the Crusader tends to rock and roll in tur- bulence, making a yaw damper a wel- come option. Also, when the center of gravity is toward its aft limit, nose- down trim authority is marginal because of the small size of the eleva- tor trim tab. The one handling trait that always comes up in conversations about the Crusader is the takeoff. It takes a decent pull on the yoke to unstick the nose, then the airplane suddenly leaps in the air. The pilot quickly has to release some back pressure to lower the angle of attack. I found it takes frequent prac- tice to obtain smooth takeoffs. The high-mounted stabilizer is not the only culprit here. The wheels and tires are a few inches too far back in relation to the CG. Cessna was aware of the problem but couldn't fix it because to do so would have led to another All specijIcatiolls are based Oil mallufactllrer's calCIIlatiolls. All perforll/allce jIgures are based Oil stalldard day, stalldard atmosphere. sea level, gross weight collditiolls IIl1less otherwise Ilored. Limiting and Hecommended Airspeeds VMC (min control w/one engine inoperative) VSSE (min intentional one-engine operation) Vx (best angle of climb) Vy (best rate of climb) VXSE (best single-engine angle of climb) VYSE (best single-engine rate of climb) VA (design maneuvering) V"E (max nap extended) VLE (max gear extended) Vw (max gear operating) Extend Hetract VNO (max structural cruising) VNE (never exceed) VR (rotation) VS1 (stall, clean) Vso (stall, in landing configuration) 1,275 ft 1,750 ft 3,185 ft Powerplants Performance Takeoff distance, ground roll Takeoff distance over 50-ft obstacle Accelerate-stop distance Length Height Wingspan Wing area Wing loading Power loading Seats Cabin length Cabin width Cabin height Empty weight Empty weight, as tested Max ramp weight Useful load Useful load, as tested Payload w/full fuel Payload w/full fuel, as tested Max takeoff weight Max landing weight Zero fuel weight fuel capacity, std Oil capacity, ea engine Baggage capacity 76 • SEPTEMBER 1993