Swearingen SA-227AT Merlin 4

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 285 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 counter-rotating 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 19 in commuter density 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.

See Also

• Fairchild Swearingen Merlin IIIB – the smaller, lighter SA226 predecessor on 900-shp TPE331-10U engines. Compare
• Mitsubishi MU-2 Marquise/Solitaire – the era’s other fast pressurized TP twin, the closest cross-shop on speed and price. Compare
• Twin Commander Jetprop 1000 – a comparable pressurized cabin-class TP twin from the same used-market tier. Compare
• Beechcraft King Air 250 – the modern benchmark a Merlin buyer cross-shops when budget allows. Compare