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AIRVENTURE TODAY
Piper touts trainer success
www.hamiltonwatch.com
By James Wynbrandt
P
INTO THE DREAM
iper Aircraft Co. President and CEO Simon Caldecott recapped recent sales successes in the trainer market while also announcing new developments in panelware during the company’s annual press conference during EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2014. “Trainers and solutions for flight schools are our commitment,” Caldecott said, crediting the company’s improving sales picture to its decision “to get back into the training business” with the reintroduction of the Piper Archer three years ago. Caldecott reported recent trainer sales to institutions including Kent State University (two Arrows, the first Pipers in its fleet); Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (five Arrows); and the University of North Dakota (three Garmin G1000-equipped twin-engine Seminoles). Last year, the company delivered 188 aircraft, Caldecott said, and he’s “cautiously optimistic” this year’s sales will equal or better that figure. Caldecott also announced the company has received FAA regulatory approval for installing the Garmin GFC 700 automatic/automated flight control system in new Garmin G1000-equipped twin-engine Piper Senecas. Fully integrated with the G1000 glass flight deck, the GFC 700 provides flight director, autopilot, yaw damper, and automatic and manual electric trim capabilities. Caldecott also announced the sale of the first Seneca so equipped to U.S. customer Michael Borner, a retired executive who intends to use the aircraft for leisure and charitable flying. Here at AirVenture 2014, the Vero Beach, Florida, company has almost its entire product line on display (Main Aircraft Display, booths 140-145, 156-161), including all its M class (Matrix, Mirage, and Meridian) single-engine cabin aircraft; a Seneca V outfitted with the GFC 700 flight controller; and a Piper Archer. One aircraft not attending AirVenture is the Piper Archer DX, the diesel-powered version introduced at AERO Friedrichshafen this past April. The Archer DX delivers 155 hp on 5.6 gallons per hour of Jet A. “We were planning to have it here, but there’s so much attention in Europe we decided to leave it there,” Caldecott said. “That’s the market that’s going to be great for it,” he said, owing to the lack of avgas and its high price in many places on the Continent. Summing up the Piper picture, Caldecott said, “Since 2009 we’ve had steady growth and added more than 300 employees. Piper is back, and we continue to focus on the future.” PHOTO BY MARINO BORIC
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