SIAI-Marchetti SM.1019 explained

The SIAI-Marchetti SM.1019 is an Italian STOL liaison monoplane built by SIAI-Marchetti for the Italian Army. It is a turboprop-powered derivative of the Cessna O-1 Bird Dog.

Development

To meet an Italian Army requirement for a short take-off liaison aircraft, SIAI-Marchetti modified the design of the Cessna 305A/O-1 Bird Dog with a new turboprop engine and a revised tail unit. The prototype first flew on 24 May 1969 powered by a 317 hp (236 kW) Allison 250-B15C turboprop engine. It was evaluated against the Aermacchi AM.3 and was successful and won a production order for 80 aircraft.

Variants

SM.1019

Prototype with 317hp (236kW) Allison 250-B15C turboprop engine, one built

SM.1019A

Production with 317hp (236kW) Allison 250-B15G 400hp turboprop engine derated to 317hp, 81 built

SM.1019B

Production variant with 400hp (298kW) Allison 250-B17B turboprop engine, designated SM.1019E.I by the Italian Army, four built

Operators

Italian Army

Somali Air Force – 6 in 1981, all retired.

Accidents and incidents

On 24 July 2021, former US Navy F-14 pilot Dale "Snort" Snodgrass fatally crashed in an SM.1019B with the registration N28U at Lewiston–Nez Perce County Airport in Lewiston, Idaho.^[1] ^[2] The probable cause of the accident was, according to the NTSB report, failure to remove the flight control lock, which immobilized flight control surfaces.^[3]

References

Book: The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft (Part Work 1982–1985). Orbis Publishing. 2856.
Book: Taylor, John W.R.. Jane's All the World's Aircraft 1976–77. 1976. Jane's Yearbooks. London. 0-354-00538-3.
Book: Taylor, Michael J. H.. Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation. 1989. Studio Editions. London.

Notes and References

Web site: Leone. Dario. 2021-07-25. Dale "Snort" Snodgrass, legendary US Navy F-14 Tomcat pilot, killed in the crash of a SIAI-Marchetti SM.1019. 2021-07-26. The Aviation Geek Club. en-GB.
Web site: 2021-07-25. Legendary F-14 Pilot Dale 'Snort' Snodgrass Dies In A Tragic Plane Crash. 2021-07-26. The Aviationist. en-US.
Web site: 2022-07-06. Snodgrass SIAI-Marchetti SM-1019B NTSB Final Report. 2023-08-17. AvWeb. en-us.