When it was available the aircraft was supplied as a kit, for amateur construction.
The Catalina was introduced in September 1994. Avid Aircraft ceased operations in November 2003 and Catalina production ended.[5] [6]
The Catalina features a strut-braced high-wing, a three-seat enclosed cabin, retractable conventional landing gear, a boat hull and a single engine in pusher configuration.
The aircraft is made from mixed construction, consisting of welded steel tubing, with its flying surfaces covered in doped aircraft fabric, plus fiberglass for the hull and other parts. Its 361NaN1 span wing has a wing area of 150square feet and folds for storage or ground transport, without disconnecting the controls. The wing is supported by "V" lift struts with jury struts. The Catalina wings had the option of mid-wing sponsons, or the original Amphibian droop wing tip sponsons for water operations.[7]
The original engine used was the 640NaN0 Rotax 582 twin cylinder two stroke powerplant. Other known engines flown have included the Rotax 618, Rotax 912,[8] Hirth F30,[9] Hirth 2706[10] and Verner 133MK[11] engines.
The Catalina has an empty weight of 600lb and a gross weight of 1200lb, giving a useful load of 600lb. With full fuel of the payload is 495lb. While the fuel tank is standard equipment, the factory also offered optional and tanks. The earlier Amphibian model offered only standard fuel, with a total of as two tanks optional.[12]
The Avid Amphibian and Catalina could also be built without water operations capability. This variation of the aircraft was dubbed the "Landphibian", and was lighter without the inboard and outboard sponsons. In 1992 the Amphibian kit cost US$16,695, while the land-only version kit was US$15,695.
The manufacturer estimated the construction time from the supplied kit as 700 hours.
By 2001 the company reported that 100 examples of the Amphibian/Catalina were flying.
In December 2013 eleven examples were registered in the United States with the Federal Aviation Administration.[13]
One builder, Rod Snider, of Boise, Idaho, wrote, "I completed the land version of the Avid Amphibian in January of 1987. Since then I have flown this remarkable little plane for 1960 hours. It is really a superb plane for sightseeing and flying slow and camping in back country airstrips. Three people of medium build can be carried comfortably, as can two people and all necessary camping gear with full fuel." This aircraft was reported as destroyed in January 2004.[14]
