The Polynesian Air Couriers JackKnife was an amphibious light-cargo, long-range canard that saw service throughout the South Pacific during the latter half of the 21st century. Its claim to fame was its versatility as the world's first electric island hopper; fast, efficient and capable of getting into even the smallest of atoll harbors.

Although seeing a production run of nearly one hundred aircraft over the span of a decade, the WFAA eventually grounded the entire fleet after a series of catastrophic structural failures surrounding the aircraft's main wing pylon junctions resulted in seven fatalities. Investigations discovered that resin voids were present in all four downed aircraft. The cause was positively identified as an automated composite mandrel unit responsible for forming the massive T-spars of the wing pylons.

Only a handful of re-certified JackKnife remain in private service today.

Model Specifications:

14,148 Polygons
1/6 Scale Amphibious Canard
12’ Main Span
6’3” Overall Length
AUW 14.6lbs
(Main) wingloading 19oz/ft
Twin 500Kv Brushless Motors
14“x8” Carbon Propellers
Twin 3700mAh Polyquest 6s1p LiPo
Active *prop wash* ESC Cooling
7 Channel Operation
Int. Skill Level

Controls:

Throttle
Elevator (canard)
Ailerons
Rudders
Retracts (retract switch)
Water Rudder kickup (dual rate switch)
Canard trim (rotary flap knob)

Exponential is set on all control surfaces at 35%

Note: Trimming the canard can help with water take-offs for beginners as well as be used to level the aircraft throughout a wide speed envelope. With the knob counter-clockwise the trim is zero and the aircraft is set for trimmed flight at full throttle.

Aircraft concept and Design: Carl Miller
Color Scheme: Carl Miller
Flight Physics Model: Carl Miller
UVW Mapping: Doug Kaye
Extensive Polygon Mesh Refinement: Doug Kaye and Carl Miller (tutored by Doug)
Retract Physics: Doug Kaye
Pivots, naming, hierarchy and KEX export: Doug Kaye