A number of readers contacted us, attaching copies of the ad depicted below showing a Tundra tire-equipped Husky perched in the high country. The readers either asked if the numbers were true or claimed they were what comes out of the south end of a northbound bovine.
We found that unless the airplane is stripped to minimum weight and flown by an expert, the 200-foot takeoff distance number is a figment of someone’s imagination, especially when operating off of an unpaved surface at higher elevations. The AFM for the Husky provides a chart to calculate takeoff distances for the airplane at gross weight in calm wind conditions. For a 2200-pound gross weight A-1B, at sea level on a standard day, the ground roll portion of the takeoff distance for a normal takeoff—flaps up—is 775 feet. For a maximum performance takeoff—30 degrees of flaps—the ground roll drops to 580 feet on a dry, paved surface.