Diamond DA42 Twin Star

The Diamond DA42 Twin Star is a four seat, twin engine, propeller-driven airplane developed and manufactured by Austrian company Diamond Aircraft Industries. It was Diamond's first twin engine design, as well as the first new European twin-engine aircraft in its category to be developed in over twenty-five years. In 2004, the DA42 became the first diesel-powered fixed-wing aircraft to perform a non-stop crossing of the North Atlantic.

By 2012, the DA42 had become a key revenue generator for the company, having gained popularity with government and military operators in addition to the civil market that had suffered as a result of the Great Recession. Government customers have typically employed the type in the aerial surveillance role, which contributed towards the development of the Aeronautics Defense Dominator, a medium-altitude long-endurance (MALE) unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), which had been derived from the DA42.

Variants

 * DA42: Production aircraft built in Austria and Canada.
 * DA42M: Special Mission variant built in Austria, modification from standard DA42 and new production.
 * DA42 L360: Lycoming IO-360 134 kW (180 hp) equipped version using 100LL fuel instead of Jet-A1. This model is intended for the North American flight training market.
 * DA42NG: Austro Engine AE 300 127 kW (170 hp) equipped version. EASA certified March 2009; FAA certified April 2010; Transport Canada certified April 16th 2012.
 * DA42MPP: Diamond Airborne Sensing a wholly owned subsidiary of Diamond produces the MPP or "Multi Purpose Platform" variant which is modified to carry aerial sensing, mapping and surveillance payloads. The UK Ministry of Defence specified the DA42 MPP variant for its surveillance systems project, converted by DO Systems. Two aircraft were ordered in June 2008.
 * DA42MPP Centaur OPA: Aurora Flight Sciences developed an Optionally Piloted Aircraft (OPA) as an Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) platform and can be operated as either unmanned or with pilots on board. One in service with the Swiss military procurement agency Armasuisse.
 * Dominator II: Aeronautics Defense Systems Ltd developed an UAV version of the DA42, designated as the Aeronautics Defense Dominator and first flown in July 2009. Has an endurance of 28 hours with a 408 kg (899 lb) payload and speed of 140–354 km/h (75–190 knots) to a maximum altitude of 9,144 m (30,000 ft).
 * DA42-VI: Improved DA42 introduced in March 2012 with new propeller and aerodynamic clean-ups to the rudder and engine cowling, resulting in greatly increased cruise speed performance.

Users

 * Argentina
 * Argentine Army
 * Ghana
 * Ghana Air Force
 * Jamaica
 * Jamaica Defence Force Air Wing
 * Niger
 * Niger Air Force
 * Russia
 * Federal Security Service
 * Ministry of Defence
 * Rwanda
 * Rwandan Air Force
 * Switzerland
 * Federal Office for Defence Procurement
 * Swiss Air Force
 * Thailand
 * Royal Thai Air Force
 * Turkmenistan
 * Turkmen Air Force
 * Ukraine
 * Border Guard Service
 * United Kingdom
 * Royal Air Force
 * Venezuela
 * Venezuelan Air Force