Novel Design Makes This 1969 Cessna 337D Skymaster an ‘AircraftForSale’ Top Pick
Many will recall the tractor-pusher light twin from the film ‘Bat*21’.
Cessna’s 337 Skymaster is known for its distinctive twin-boom layout. [Courtesy: Airside Aviation]
Each day, the team at Aircraft For Sale picks an airplane that catches our attention because it is unique, represents a good deal, or has other interesting qualities. You can read Aircraft For Sale: Today’s Top Pick at FLYINGMag.com daily.
Cessna designed the 337 Skymaster to be a safer light twin. The idea surfaced after the company’s popular 310 twin had been on the market for a few years. Like many light twins, especially the more powerful ones, the 310 can be a handful if an engine quits. Cessna figured a twin with centerline thrust would allow pilots to avoid the hazards of VMC, the minimum controllable airspeed for conventional light twins in single-engine flight, and appeal to a new audience.
The Skymaster certainly appealed to me as a plane-spotting kid growing up in 1970s New Jersey. Our home was under busy airspace shared among Boeing 707s, Douglas DC-8s, and the full range of GA aircraft. The sight of the Skymaster’s distinctive twin-boom silhouette always generated excitement.
Years later the airplane made a bit of a pop-culture splash when it appeared in the 1988 film Bat*21, based on a true story about the rescue of a downed Air Force officer in Vietnam. Military versions of the Skymaster served in observation, light attack, and forward air control roles for many countries. In the film, Danny Glover’s character risks all in his Skymaster to locate Gene Hackman’s character in enemy territory.
This 1969 Cessna 337D Skymaster has 6,130 hours on the airframe, 645 hours on each of its Continental IO-360-CB6 engines, and zero hours on its freshly overhauled McCauley propellers. The panel includes a Garmin SL30 nav/com, Apollo GX65 GPS/com SL70 transponder, KR87 ADF, and PS Engineering PMA7000 audio panel. The airplane comes with a Robertson STOL kit and cargo pod. It received new paint and interior in 2008.
Pilots looking for twin-engine redundancy without worrying about asymmetric thrust should consider this 1969 Cessna 337D Skymaster, which is available for $87,000 on AircraftForSale.
You can arrange financing of the aircraft through FLYING Finance. For more information, email info@flyingfinance.com.
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