Fairchild Swearingen Merlin IVC

Turboprop twin engine • Low Wing • Retractable gear

Range Map

Origin:

• nm at current load

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Payload vs. Range

Configure weights

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

278

KTAS

Cruise Speed

1,170

Max Range

31,000

Service Ceiling

Occupants

1958

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 IVC

Type certificated 1981 Source: FAA Type Certificate Data Sheet

Overview

The Fairchild Swearingen Merlin IVC is a pressurized cabin-class twin turboprop, the stretched SA227 development of Ed Swearingen’s Merlin line built from the early 1980s. It shares its fuselage, systems, and Garrett (AiResearch) TPE331-11U engines with the Metro III commuter, but in executive trim it trades the commuter’s high-density seating for a roomier low-density cabin. Two 1,000-shp TPE331-11U engines give it a high-altitude cruise near 280 KTAS, a 31,000-foot ceiling, and genuine cabin-class payload.

For the GA buyer, the Merlin IVC is among the least expensive ways into a fast, pressurized, cabin-class twin turboprop with a long cabin and a large baggage allowance. Acquisition costs sit well below a comparable King Air. The trade is the same as the rest of the family: 1980s airframes, the Garrett TPE331’s exacting operating discipline, and the running costs of two turbines.

Key Features for GA Buyers

Twin 1,000-shp TPE331-11U. The larger SA227’s high-output Garrett turboprops, flat-rated to 1,000 shp each, on four-blade propellers.
31,000-foot pressurized ceiling. A 7.0-psi cabin, the same differential as the Merlin IIIB, holds roughly 8,000 feet at the low-20s altitudes the airplane typically cruises.
Cabin-class payload. A useful load above 6,000 lb at the 16,000-lb optional gross supports full fuel with a meaningful cabin.
Stretched SA227 cabin. The longer fuselage seats up to sixteen occupants and carries roughly six to ten in executive comfort.

Trade-offs

1980s airframes. The newest Merlin IVCs 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 turbines to fuel and reserve against put the Merlin above any single-turboprop on hourly cost.
Narrow cabin. The SA227 fuselage is long but narrow, trading cabin width for speed and a small frontal area.

Technical Specifications

Dimensions & Weights

Height: 16.7 ft
Length: 59.4 ft
Parking area (ft²): 4314.8 ft²

Max Takeoff Weight: 15,999 lbs
Max Landing Weight: 15,675 lbs
Useful Load: 6,300 lbs
Fuel Capacity: 648 gal

Performance

Cruise Speed: 278 KTAS
Never-Exceed (V_NE): Source: FAA Type Certificate Data Sheet 248 KIAS
Max Structural Cruise (V_NO): Source: FAA Type Certificate Data Sheet 248 KIAS
Approach Speed: 112 KIAS
Stall, Clean (V_S₁): 86 KIAS
Range: 1170 NM
Service Ceiling: 31,000 ft
Rate of Climb: 800 - 1500 fpm

Engines

Sources

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