Air Tractor AT-500 family

The Air Tractor AT-500 is a family of agricultural aircraft that first flew in the United States on 25 April 1986, manufactured by Air Tractor Inc. Of monoplane low-wing, taildragger configuration, they carry a chemical hopper between the engine firewall and the cockpit. Compared with their predecessor, the AT-500 family featured a wingspan increase of 50 ft (15.2 m), and an additional fuselage stretch of 22 in (56 cm), allowing for a larger chemical hopper. Almost all variants offer a widened "buddy" seat or a tandem seat for a passenger, observer, or loader; trainer aircraft with full dual controls have also been offered.

From 2011 through 2018, the AT-502B was the world's top-selling agricultural aircraft with 388 deliveries, while the combined AT-500 line (AT-502A, -502B, and -504) was among the world's most popular fixed wing general aviation single-turboprop aircraft families, with 470 delivered—a total exceeded only by the Pilatus PC-12 and the Cessna 208 Caravan family during that time.

Variants

 * AT-500:Prototype
 * AT-501:Piston-powered version with 600 shp Pratt & Whitney R-1340 engine, one seat, gross weight of 6500 lb
 * AT-502:Upgraded AT-501 with 680 shp Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-15AG or 750 shp PT6A-34AG engine, one or two seats, gross weight of 6500 lb or 8000 lb depending on production date and wing spar type
 * AT-502A:Hot and high version of AT-502 with 1100 shp PT6A-65AG or 1050 shp PT6A-60AG engine, one or two seats in tandem or side-by-side arrangement, gross weight of 8000 lb
 * AT-502B:Main production version, development of AT-502 with 750 shp PT6A-34AG engine, one or two seats in tandem or side-by-side arrangement, gross weight of 8000 lb
 * AT-502XP:Updated AT-502A with 867 shp PT6A-140AG engine
 * AT-503:Production version with 1100 shp PT6A-45R engine, tandem seats, gross weight of 8000 lb
 * AT-503A:AT-503 with 750 shp PT6A-34AG engine, tandem seats dual controls, AT-501 wings
 * AT-503T:Dual-control trainer version of AT-503 with shorter AT-401 wings, tandem seats
 * AT-504:Dual-control trainer version of AT-502B with side-by-side seating, replaced tandem-seat AT-503 trainers, introduced 2009