Canadair CL-215

CL-215
General information
Type	Firefighting amphibious aircraft
Manufacturer	Canadair
Status	In service
Primary users	Canada Greece Spain United States
Number built	125[1]
History
Manufactured	1969–1990
Introduction date	1969
First flight	23 October 1967[2]
Variants	Canadair CL-415

The Canadair CL-215 (Scooper) is the first model in a series of flying boat amphibious aircraft designed and built by Canadian aircraft manufacturer Canadair, and later produced by Bombardier. It is one of only a handful of large amphibious aircraft to have been produced in large numbers during the post-war era, and the first to be developed from the outset as a water bomber.

The CL-215 is a twin-engine, high-wing aircraft designed in the 1960s. From an early stage, it was developed to perform aerial firefighting operations as a water bomber; to operate well in such a capacity, it can be flown at relatively low speeds and in high gust-loading environments, as are typically found over forest fires. It can also be used for other missions types, including passenger services, freight transport, and air-sea search and rescue operations. On 23 October 1967, the first prototype performed its maiden flight, and the first production aircraft was handed over during June 1969.

While production of the CL-215 was terminated during 1990, this was due to the imminent introduction of an improved variant of the aircraft, which was designated as the CL-415, the manufacture of which commenced during 1993. Furthermore, numerous conversion and improvement programmes have been developed for existing aircraft, such as the CL-215T, a turbine-powered model of the original aircraft which replaces the original Pratt & Whitney R-2800-83AM radial engines with a pair of Pratt & Whitney Canada PW123AF turbine engines. Other changes include the addition of new avionics and various structural improvements.