The Seawind is a family of composite, four-seat, amphibian airplanes that all feature a single tail-mounted engine.

[2][3] The Seawind is most distinctive for its engine pod, which juts forward from the leading edge of the very large vertical fin.

The design is also noted for its long, low profile and sleek curves made practical by composite construction.

The wide cabin also supports a large instrument panel, allowing installation of virtually any avionics.

The Seawind 2000 and 3000's retractable landing gear is hinged to the side of the hull and folds up into the wing for flight and water operations.

[citation needed] Seawind kits were developed and sold by SNA Inc. of Kimberton, Pennsylvania, United States.

After several routine tests, they attempted to simulate an engine-out situation reducing the engine power and setting the prop pitch to high.

Some skeptics had felt this was a potential weak point in the Seawind design,[4] although the pylon is capable of 15G vertical and 20G forward loading, more than twice the certification requirement.

A "Kwick Kit" option was also available, which provided some of the major components pre-assembled to reduce the build time to approximately 1600 hours.

[4] In July 2008 the company announced that was still pursuing certification and commencement of production, a task it stated would require US$4 million.

Regarding the timeline to restart the flight testing and production, company president Dick Silva stated in September 2008, "There is a limit to how long we can go without resuming the project.

"[8] In April 2009 Silva announced that the company had found sufficient funding to restart, would rehire staff and intended to have a replacement prototype ready to fly by the beginning of August 2009, with the aim of completing the certification of the 300C.

Silva publicly announced that certification would be complete in June 2010 and that he was seeking funding for the stages beyond that, including production.

[12] By June 2010 the flight testing had just commenced with re-instrumentation and solving a landing gear door flutter issue.

[15][16] Certification flight testing continued through the summer and autumn of 2011 with fixes for problems with adverse yaw, lateral stability, ineffective rudder trim at low power settings, pitch damping, roll/yaw damping, high rotation forces on takeoff and the stall prevention system.

"[17][18] After a delay of a year to address issues, the prototype Seawind was returned to Ottawa for further flight testing in August 2012.

[19] In the fall of 2012 Silva wrote that the company had suffered years of set-backs because of their dealings with Canada Revenue Agency (CRA).

The company had been moved from the United States because of financial incentives available in Canada that would make aircraft certification affordable.

Silva wrote "This fiasco has put over a 1 million dollar hole in our budget, which was needed to complete certification.

Silva continued, "Once the CRA turned down our 2009 refund, common business sense says slow down and preserve capital until you are sure you will receive the money.

The prototype was repaired but the National Research Council lacked a pilot with sufficient seaplane experience to complete that phase of the certification.

[22] On 9 January 2019 Richard Silva, the head of the company and driving force behind the certification process, died at age 82.

[26] Due to kits purchased some time ago being completed, this number is expected to increase over the next few years, minus any aircraft destroyed in accidents.