PPT Slide
MC-27L Seaplanes + skis = Land on Land, too
Stroukoff called his ski landing system
“pan-to-base” or ability to land any
where; note regular rubber-tire
wheeled landing gear poke through
the skis for rolling landings and
take-offs. The U.S. Army used to have
this ethos when led by the Howze
Board in ‘62; it adopted the amazing
OV-1 Mohawk turboprop STOL
observation/surveillance/attack
plane which had snow skis. Would
OV-1s be better in the surveil/attack
mission than U-27s? Darn right they
would be. But OV-1s were forcibly
retired in ‘96 and are not in production.
OV-1s can’t drop troops like the
slower OV-10 can, but the OV-10
is similarly retired/dead no-longer-in
production. The U-27 is the best way
to regain these lost capabilities.