Daher Kodiak 100

The Kodiak 100 is a purpose-built STOL utility turboprop designed from a clean sheet to replace aging de Havilland Beavers and Cessna Caravans in demanding bush and mission operations. Tom Hamilton (founder of Stoddard-Hamilton/Glasair) and David Voetmann launched the project under Idaho Air Group in 1999, forming Quest Aircraft Company in 2001. The Kodiak first flew in October 2004 and earned FAA Part 23 certification in May 2007, with the first delivery to Spirit Air in January 2008. Setouchi Holdings bought Quest in 2015, and French aerospace group Daher acquired the program in October 2019, folding it alongside the TBM line as Daher's second turboprop product family.

The airplane is built around the 750 SHP Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-34 — the same engine family found on the Cessna Caravan, de Havilland Twin Otter, and Air Tractor — paired with a Hartzell four-blade composite prop, a robust 7,255 lb fixed-gear airframe, and a flat-floor cargo cabin big enough for ten track-mounted seats or roughly 3,500 lb of useful load. A discontinuous leading-edge cuff improves stall behavior at high angles of attack, and the airplane routinely operates off 1,000 ft unimproved strips at gross weight. Roughly 339 Kodiaks had been delivered by early 2024, with customers including Mission Aviation Fellowship, JAARS, the U.S. Forest Service, Papua New Guinea operators, Part 135 freight carriers, and a growing personal-use owner base. Quest's original "Quest Mission Team" program sold every 11th aircraft at cost to a mission organization; Daher has continued supporting mission operators while expanding the product with the Series II (2018) and Series III (2021) and the stretched, faster Kodiak 900 (2022).

All Kodiak 100 variants share the same wing, gear, and 750 SHP PT6A-34. The Kodiak 900 is covered as a separate family entry.

The published 183 KTAS max cruise is achieved at mid-teens altitudes; most operators flight-plan 170-174 KTAS at ~48 gph or pull back to an economy cruise around 135 KTAS at ~33 gph to stretch range to 1,132 nm (8.4 hours plus reserve). With 320 gallons of fuel, the Kodiak has real transcontinental legs when lightly loaded. The PT6A-34 is flat-rated, so it holds 750 SHP well into the flight levels — sea-level climb is 1,340 fpm and it will still do ~867 fpm through 10,000 ft, which is the trait that makes the airplane shine in hot-and-high density altitude operations where piston singles fold.

STOL numbers are the marquee figure: ground roll under 1,000 ft at max gross, and real-world operators regularly land and depart from 700-800 ft strips with a partial load. The discontinuous leading edge cuff gives very docile stall characteristics and predictable aileron authority down into the 60 KIAS region. On floats (Aerocet 6650 amphibs), expect roughly 10-12 KTAS cruise penalty and a useful load hit near 700-800 lb, but water handling is reportedly excellent.

With 320 gallons of jet-A (2,144 lb) the Kodiak has a classic utility-turbine tradeoff:

• Full fuel + useful load: 3,485 lb useful - 2,144 lb fuel = 1,341 lb cabin payload — roughly six 180 lb adults with light bags, or a pilot plus 1,200 lb of freight, flying 1,132 nm at economy cruise.
• Full seats (10 x 180 lb + pilot): 1,980 lb cabin weight → leaves 1,505 lb for fuel = ~225 gallons, range ~800 nm at max cruise.
• Max cargo hauler (1 pilot + 3,305 lb freight): zero passenger weight; ~180 lb of fuel margin requires short legs or partial fuel.
• Bush strip short-leg config (½ fuel + full seats): enables operation from 700 ft strips with full pax load on ~400 nm legs, the mission the airplane was designed for.

Compared to the Cessna 208 Caravan (similar engine, similar useful load, but heavier empty weight and slower cruise), the Kodiak trades about 8-10 KTAS cruise for better short-field numbers and a more modern airframe. The Pilatus PC-12 offers pressurization, ~270 KTAS cruise, and 1,800+ nm range for roughly twice the acquisition cost and a significantly higher operating budget, but concedes unimproved-strip capability. The Cessna 185 Skywagon is the piston-single comparator at one-quarter the price, but with half the useful load, a third the cabin volume, and none of the turbine reliability.

See Backcountry / Bush Flying mission scoring for where the Kodiak sits in the overall STOL utility hierarchy, and MOSAIC (Modernization of Special Airworthiness Certification) for why turbine singles sit entirely outside the MOSAIC light-aircraft framework.

• Backcountry/bush (10): The Kodiak's reason to exist. STOL distances, big tires, high ground clearance, tough trailing-link gear, turbine reliability, and massive cargo door make it a category leader alongside the Caravan and PC-6.
• Cargo hauling (10): 3,500 lb useful load, flat floor, 53x49 inch cargo door, optional belly pod (+63 cu ft), and ten-seat convertibility put it in the top tier for single-engine freight.
• Surveying (9): Stable platform, turbine reliability, plenty of electrical power, long endurance, belly pod and camera port STCs. Only loses to the PC-12 on altitude/speed.
• Business travel (8): 183 KTAS and 25,000 ft ceiling with G1000 NXi are solid; no pressurization is the main limitation versus a PC-12 or TBM for long legs.
• Cross-country (8): Range and reliability are there; speed trails pressurized competitors, and oxygen required above FL125 for crew.
• Flight training (2): Turbine complexity, acquisition cost, and fuel burn make it impractical for primary or instrument training; used only for turbine transition and type-specific training.
• Local fun flying (3): Overbuilt and expensive to operate for pleasure flying; owners who use it this way typically combine it with utility missions.
• Aerobatics (1): Not certified for aerobatics.

Every Kodiak 100 shipped from the factory with Garmin G1000 (2007-2017), then G1000 NXi (Series II onward). Typical panel includes dual GDU 1040/1045 PFD/MFD displays, GFC 700 autopilot with yaw damper, dual GIA 63W nav/com/GPS, GWX 70/75 radar, GTS 820/825 traffic, synthetic vision (SVT), TAWS-B, GDL 69A XM weather, and ADS-B in/out. Series III introduced a reorganized cockpit layout with improved switch logic and CAS annunciations.

Common aftermarket additions include Garmin GWX 8000 StormOptix radar upgrades, GI 275 standby, Spectralux DCU-200 datalink, and L3 LYNX multilink transponders for commercial ops. Mission operators often add JAARS/MAF-specific cargo management electronics, satellite tracking (Spider, Iridium), and HF radio.

• Aerocet 6650 amphibious floats — ~$350,000 installed; ~10 KTAS cruise penalty; ~750 lb useful load reduction; water rudders and retractable gear for land/water ops.
• Wipaire Wipline 7000 floats — competing float option, similar penalty and capability.
• Belly cargo pod — factory and aftermarket; +63 cu ft, ~100 lb weight penalty, ~2 KTAS cruise penalty; standard on most freight operators.
• Oxygen system — built-in or portable for FL180-250 operations.
• Garmin GWX 8000 radar upgrade — ~$45,000-60,000 installed.
• Texas Turbine Conversions / Blackhawk XP42A upgrade — limited availability; aftermarket engine upgrades are less common on the Kodiak than on the Caravan since the PT6A-34 is already well-matched.
• Camera port / survey mods — mission-specific, priced per installation.

Daher supports the Kodiak through the Sandpoint, Idaho factory (inherited from Quest) and a global authorized service center network. Parts availability is good — Daher has continued investment and the Kodiak Care program (Series III) bundles scheduled maintenance into a fixed hourly rate, which many operators favor for budgeting. PT6A-34 support is universal: any PT6 shop (Standard Aero, Covington, Dallas Airmotive, H+S Aviation, P&WC-owned facilities) can overhaul, hot-section, or warranty-service the engine.

Typical annual inspection runs $8,000-$15,000 labor plus parts, with heavier phase inspections (every 600-1,200 hours depending on schedule) running significantly more. Hourly maintenance reserve is commonly budgeted at $150-$200/hr including engine reserves; P&WCSMART flat-rate PT6A-34 overhauls start around $319,000, and hot-section work runs $180,000-$230,000. Mechanics familiar with the specific Kodiak airframe are concentrated in the Pacific Northwest, Alaska, and mission-operator hubs — outside those areas expect to ferry for heavy maintenance.

Annual operating cost for an owner-flown 200 hr/year Kodiak typically lands in the $150,000-$220,000 range all-in, depending on fuel price, insurance, and reserves.

See Maintenance Ecosystem for turboprop maintenance networks.

Kodiak 100 values are driven primarily by engine time since overhaul (TSOH/TSHSI), airframe total time, avionics generation (G1000 vs G1000 NXi vs Series III panel), and whether the airplane is on floats.

• Original Kodiak 100 (2008-2013), mid-time engine, G1000: $1.8M-$2.2M
• Kodiak 100 (2014-2017), lower time: $2.2M-$2.6M
• Kodiak 100 Series II (2018-2020): $2.4M-$2.9M
• Kodiak 100 Series III (2021-2024), late model used: $2.9M-$3.4M
• New Kodiak 100 Series III (factory): ~$2.8M-$3.2M base, ~$3.6M typically equipped
• Kodiak 900 (reference): ~$3.5M-$4.0M new

Floats add $250k-$400k depending on condition. Fresh engine overhaul or zero-time hot section can add $150k-$300k. Commercial Part 135 pedigree with complete logs commands a premium with freight/mission buyers.

See Aircraft Valuation Methodology and Avionics Pricing Reference for detailed adjustment formulas.

• Flap actuator / flap track wear — recurring maintenance item; regular lubrication and inspection in manufacturer schedule.
• Main gear trailing-link pivot bushings — high wear item on rough-strip operators; inspect at annual.
• Fuel selector valve and fuel system leaks — several service bulletins over the program; verify compliance.
• Rudder / elevator trim actuator — SBs on older serial numbers.
• G1000 software currency — keep LRUs on current Garmin software to maintain LPV and ADS-B compliance.
• Engine hot-section condition — PT6A-34 HSI at 1,800 hours, TBO at 4,000 hours. Condition-based extensions possible with borescope data.
• Corrosion on floatplanes — aggressive inspection required; salt-water ops significantly shorten airframe life.

No catastrophic recurring ADs; the Kodiak has a relatively clean certification history compared to legacy bush airplanes.

Turbine single insurance is heavily pilot-driven. Typical Kodiak 100 hull premiums run $15,000-$25,000 annually for experienced turbine pilots with 500+ turbine hours and a current type-specific training signoff. Liability is typically $1M smooth or $1M/$100k per-seat sublimit. Owners transitioning from piston singles face underwriting friction — most insurers require SIMCOM or FlightSafety Kodiak-specific initial training, 25+ hours dual, and a mentor-pilot period. Float operations, commercial use, and bush strip ops all add premium load. Hull values of $2.5M-$3M are typical on the market today.

See GA Insurance Underwriting for turboprop insurance categories.