Catalina Aircraft Company has announced plans for a new Engineering and Technology Center (ETC) in Vero Beach, Florida, to support development of its Catalina SPAR amphibious aircraft.
The multi-tenant facility will bring Catalina’s design team together with aerospace and hardtech start-ups, providing shared access to digital engineering resources, a scale wind tunnel, wave tank, and 3-D printing and materials laboratories.
Catalina said the centre would help accelerate aerodynamic, structural and amphibious hull development, as well as support the SPAR’s planned FAA Part 25 certification. Leasing space and testing capacity to other companies is also expected to offset operating and equipment costs.
“The Engineering and Technology Center gives us the infrastructure to design, build and test the Catalina SPAR right here in Vero Beach, while helping build out this region’s broader aerospace ecosystem,” said Bennett Biever, vice-president of business development.
The Catalina SPAR is being developed as a multi-mission platform for applications including aerial firefighting, transport, patrol, humanitarian support and search and rescue.
Catalina said the Vero Beach facility would build on the region’s aviation heritage while strengthening the Treasure Coast as a centre for aerospace engineering and testing. Abbildung
