THE ULTIMATE BUSH PLANE By most estimates, planning and building the full-size DRACO should have taken years. Entrepreneur Mike Patey — whose exceptional drive and Back to Work™ ethic have inspired thousands of people — accomplished it in just over five months! Mike started with a Wilga 2000, replacing its Lycoming O-540 piston engine with a Pratt & Whitney PT6A-28 turboprop boasting about twice the power at half the weight. Many additional modifications followed before Mike proudly unveiled his “ultimate bush plane”. It could go to the same places as a Carbon Cub, but also climb twice as fast; reach altitudes up to 28,000 feet; and cruise cross-country at 180 MPH while carrying four people plus gear. Changes from the Wilga were so extensive that the FAA approved Mike’s redesign as an experimental exhibition aircraft. The DRACO 2
