Mahindra Aerospace's Airvan 10 achieves type certificate

Jun 19, 2017: Australia's first 10 seat Single Engine Turbine aircraft, the AIRVAN 10, has been awarded its FAR 23 Type Certificate from the Australian Civil Aviation Safety Authority, which was followed, by the US Type Certificate being issued by the Federal Aviation Administration.

S P Shukla, chairman, Mahindra Aerospace, and Group president-Aerospace & Defence, Mahindra Group, commented, "This (certification) comes as a cornerstone for civil aviation. This certification under stringent safety standards in place today, aligns with Mahindra Group's focus on introducing world class products in fast changing general aviation world which will be dominated significantly by turboprobs in this class of aircraft. It enhances our global reach further with specific focus on large markets for regional connectivity such as India, USA and Africa."

This not only allows us to expand our existing markets but also provides much needed boost to regional low cost connectivity to those areas in the world where AvGas is a constraint. Our focus on engineering and in world class execution is the key to this milestone, said Arvind Mehra, executive director & CEO of Mahindra Aerospace.

Keith Douglas, CEO of GippsAero said, "For our Australia and India teams, this is a much deserved recognition. This now gives us an opportunity to progress into the next stage of the programme which will address customer and region specific enhancements to the aircraft. We expect delivery of the first aircraft to identified customers by the early 2018. There has been a significant demand for such aircraft in expanding general aviation turboprop market and we are confident we will fill the gap by providing this cost effective solution."

GippsAero will follow its time proven process of intensive consultation and operational trials with lead customers, and representatives from its world-wide distribution network to refine the basic utility aircraft progressively for the many roles it will meet in service.

The Rolls-Royce M250 powered AIRVAN 10 follows in the footsteps of the piston engine eight seat AIRVAN 8, and the Turbo charged version of this aircraft, which are now operating in 29 countries and have achieved high service times with the excellent reliability and low maintenance costs. The AIRVAN family of aircraft have been targeted at niche markets where there are few direct competitors and the efficiency and economy of these aircrafts have established them as the exemplar in several continents, under widely varying conditions and operational requirements.