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#2818

Pilatus U-28 Draco

first flight unknown

10 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences
  1. 1. MC-12W Liberty and U-28A Draco (7050055): Andrew LaMoreaux· Public domain
  2. 2. Southern Star '25, U-28A Draco (9096744): Airman 1st Class Gracelyn Hess· Public domain
  3. 3. The sun rises over a row of U-28A Draco aircraft at Kabul International Airport, August 2021: Lt. Col. Scott Hardman· Public domain
  4. 4. U-28A flies over deployed location (4951031): Senior Airman Luke Kitterman· Public domain
  5. 5. U-28 Nellis AFB take off (8442336) Cropped: Senior Airman Jose Miguel Tamondong· Public domain
  6. 6. 07-0821 U-28 UNITED STATES AIR FORCE (54652752485): Jonathan Payne from Ayr, United Kingdom· CC BY-SA 4.0
  7. 7. A U-28A Draco assigned to the 319th Special Operations Squadron is parked on the flightline at Hurlburt Field, Florida, Aug. 12, 2020: Airman 1st Class Blake Wiles· Public domain
  8. 8. A U-28A Draco at Hurlburt Field, Florida, September 2, 2022: Senior Airman Dylan Gentile· Public domain
  9. 9. Capt. Todd Lee, the 34th Special Operations Squadron chief of training, inspects a U-28A Draco during the Force Generation validation exercise at Robins AFB, Georgia, November 7, 2021: Airman 1st Class Amanda A. Flower-Raschella· Public domain
  10. 10. Pilatus U-28 Niamey: Sputniktilt· CC BY-SA 3.0
Read about it on Wikipedia ↗
Pilatus U-28 Draco, photo 1 of 10
1/10 Andrew LaMoreaux· Public domain

what is it?

The Pilatus-SNC U-28A Draco is an American special operations, tactical intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR), forward air control, and counter insurgency aircraft operated by Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC). It is a version of the single-engine turboprop Pilatus PC-12 modified by the Sierra Nevada Corporation which was first acquired by SOCOM in October 2005 to provide support for special operations forces. Dedicated sensors and communication equipment allow it to provide real time full-motion video to ground forces and serve as their "eyes in the sky".

base stats

  • built 30made in total

Bars compare against all aircraft: 3,500 km/h, 20,000 km, 850 seats; size and number built on a log scale up to 640 t (An-225) and 45,000 built (Cessna 172).

spec sheet

first flight
—
introduced
2006
number built
30
engines
—
top speed
—
range
—

Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.

Sources: Wikidata Q128338854, Wikipedia: Pilatus U-28 Draco (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-24.

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