Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation

Cessna Model 188/T188 AGwagon, AGpickup,
AGtruck, AGhusky (USA)
   The AGwagon was first flown in prototype form on 19 February 1965 as a specialised agricultural aircraft which Cessna decided to develop after an extensive survey into the requirements of the operators of such aircraft. The first two versions were the Model 188 AGwagon 230 with a 171.4 kW (230 hp) Continental O-470-R engine and the Model A 188 AGwagon 300 with a 223.5 kW (300 hp) IO-520-D engine.
   In 1971 Cessna announced the introduction of new agricultural aircraft based on the earlier AGwagon. Of these, the AGpickup with a similar engine to the AGwagon 230 was discontinued in 1976. The new AGwagon has a similar engine to the Model A 188 AGwagon and the AGtruck is generally similar but with a 1,060 litre (280 US gallon) hopper and additional standard equipment. The AGhusky is a turbocharged version of the AGtruck, the 231 kVV (310 hp) engine providing improved performance at varying operational altitudes.
The 1978 versions of these agricultural aircraft introduced a number of improvements as standard, including a re-engineered night lighting system which saves weight; a remote-mounted oil cooler which simplifies maintenance; a manual spray valve; better access to wings and fuselage to simplify cleaning; and a new exterior styling with polyurethane paint as standard. They are of all-metal construction and have special corrosion proofing, heavy-duty spring Land-O-Matic landing gear and Cessna's Camber-Lift wing to provide better control during low-speed operations. Special attention has been paid to safety features. A total of 3,389 examples of the AGwagon, AGpickup, AGtruck and AGhusky had been built by late 1978.
   Data (1978 AGwagon): Engine as above Wing span 12.41 m (40 ft 8 1/2 in) Length 8.0 m (26 ft 3 in) Max T-O weight 1,814 kg (4,000 lb) Max level speed 243 km/h (151 mph) Max cruising range 595 km (370 miles) Equipment 757 litre (200 US gallon) hopper, liquid and dry material dispersal control system, etc.