Fairchild Swearingen Merlin IIIB

Turboprop twin engine • Low Wing • Retractable gear

Range Map

Origin:

• nm at current load

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Payload vs. Range

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Occupants

lb + lbs / pax

Select payload

gal

Fuel on board

lbs

Extra weight

Range

Available Range / nm

Mission capable. Aircraft can handle the current load with full fuel tanks.

Fuel capacity reduced by gallons ( gal usable for nm range).

Over max gross weight. Reduce payload by lbs to safely operate this aircraft.

Extra weight is the additional payload available with your selected passengers.

Mission Profile

Used market

280

KTAS

Cruise Speed

1,938

Max Range

31,000

Service Ceiling

Occupants

213

lbs

Wet Payload

Endorsements & ratings:

High-Performance
Complex
High-Altitude
Pressurization
Multi-Engine
Instrument

Estimated Ownership Costs

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About the Fairchild Swearingen Merlin IIIB

Type certificated 1978 Source: FAA Type Certificate Data Sheet

Overview

The Fairchild Swearingen Merlin IIIB is a pressurized cabin-class twin turboprop from the SA226 family, built from 1979 as the high-output evolution of Ed Swearingen’s Merlin line. Two 900-shp Garrett (AiResearch) TPE331-10U engines turning four-blade propellers give it a long-legged, high-altitude cruise: up to about 280 KTAS, a 31,000-foot ceiling, and an IFR range past 2,000 nm with a light load. It shares its fuselage and systems with the Metro commuter, but in executive trim it carries six to eight passengers in a pressurized cabin.

For the GA buyer, the Merlin IIIB is one of the least expensive ways into a fast, pressurized, cabin-class twin turboprop. Acquisition costs sit well below a comparable King Air, and the airplane delivers 280-KTAS cruise and FL250-plus capability. The trade is age (the youngest airframes are from the mid-1980s), the Garrett TPE331’s particular operating discipline, and the running costs of two turbines.

Key Features for GA Buyers

Twin 900-shp TPE331-10U. Four-blade propellers with synchrophasers; the -10U is the high-output Merlin III engine, with a 5,400-hour family TBO.
31,000-foot pressurized ceiling. A 7.0-psi cabin holds roughly 8,000 feet at the low-20s altitudes the airplane typically cruises.
648-gallon fuel capacity. Plans past 2,000 nm IFR with a light load and about 1,680 nm with six aboard.
Useful load above 4,500 lb. Carries full fuel with meaningful cabin payload remaining.

Trade-offs

1970s and 80s airframes. The newest IIIBs left the line in the mid-1980s, so buyers inherit aging systems, parts-availability questions, and the need for a shop that knows the type.
Garrett operating discipline. The TPE331 is a tight, efficient engine but demands precise hot-section and operating management; an inexperienced operator can run up large maintenance bills.
Twin-turbine running costs. Two engines to fuel (around 100 GPH total) and reserve against put the Merlin above any single-turboprop on hourly cost.
Narrow cabin. The SA226 fuselage is long but narrow, trading cabin width for speed and a small frontal area.

Technical Specifications

Dimensions & Weights

Height: 16.7 ft
Length: 42.2 ft
Parking area (ft²): 2657.36 ft²

Max Takeoff Weight: 12,500 lbs
Max Landing Weight: 12,500 lbs
Useful Load: 4,555 lbs
Fuel Capacity: 648 gal

Performance

Cruise Speed: 280 KTAS
Never-Exceed (V_NE): Source: FAA Type Certificate Data Sheet 265 KIAS
Max Structural Cruise (V_NO): Source: FAA Type Certificate Data Sheet 265 KIAS
Approach Speed: 92 KIAS
Stall, Clean (V_S₁): 71 KIAS
Range: 1938 NM
Service Ceiling: 31,000 ft
Rate of Climb: 1000 - 2650 fpm

Engines

Sources

Where the figures on this page come from. Fairchild Swearingen Merlin IIIB specifications are traced to published references; estimated values are flagged inline next to the figure.