Taxi steering was selected on the column switch, and the airplane moved easily at our ramp weight of 10,800 pounds. Piaggio can do it, too. But it was not his fault that it. Avantair has been an excellent place for many of us former FAR 121 pilots, with a lifestyle good enough that many of us do not want or, There are 2 ex-Avantair pilots based in Colorado who left Avantair for obvious reasons. Once level, we were rewarded with what was nearly the top speed of the P.180, which was consistently 395 knots bumping up to that magical 400-knot figure on a couple of occasions, those figures at around 800 pounds per hour total. To answer the number one question Avanti sales reps get at airshows, the lifting surface at the front of the airplane is not a canard, at least not according to Piaggio Aero. Taking back control as we lined up, Villi held the brakes using the top of the toe pedals, advanced the power levers to 97.6 percent, and we accelerated briskly to 120 knots. Findings as to risk: Both flights continued to their destinations without further incident. Management is out for their gain and don't care for the customers, after all it is the customers who legally own the airplanes, not the company. WebTo order vehicle records online, you will need to: Have a permissible use for the information if purchasing records other than your own; Select Online Services; Under Additional For Genoa this means an ILS approach onto Runway 28, and if the wind is from the east, as it was for our flight, a circling approach. When the crew explained that MYF was below approach minimus due to the CAT B limitation, the owner used abusive language and accused them of lying. Operationally this company is in big trouble. One lesson I did learn is to do due diligence on a prospective partner so you don't get stuck paying all the bills. Max range / 1,470 nm. Luckily it was 2007 and we sold it just before the crash. The Avanti II's efficiencies can reduce operating costs by as much as 40 percent, according to Bingham. A traffic target can be out of view in certain positions, at around 2 oclock for the left-seater or 11 oclock for the right-seater. So to Don, you dont happen to live in Vegas do you? Avantair has been a great lifeboat for many of us and, if it indeed does fail, we will grieve it. With regard to maintenance all you need to do is get an engineer to do you monthly checks and for the big ones send it to Dusseldorf. The start-up sequence is pure PT6; its a completely pilot-controlled process. Yes, the Captain, a mere mortal and an infallible being, DID miss the elevator on his post flight inspection. So I took them up on their offer to find me a charter flight. Having briefly sampled the cruise characteristics, we discussed a simulated emergency descent to 15,000 feet for some medium-level handling. First, with a far aft wing the engines two Pratt & Whitney PT6s in a pusher configuration can be mounted very far aft as well, which helps keep the interior noise low. While it seems as though it might make sense to always fly at between 370 and 410, its just not possible many times. The Avanti II gets its best range figures, up around 1,500 nm, at higher altitudes and lower fuel burns, and Grant told me that the range is real, commenting that I had to look at the placard on the panel to decide that it is the latter, but once I worked this out, the trim was powerful and required only a one-second application to remove all the rudder force. Deviating from ICAO-compliant English, the controller told us, Piste libre before we lined up and discussed the departure. Gulfstream Aerospace Celebrates 25 G700 Speed Records, A New Pilot Gets an Accelerated Course in Flying, Your Ideal Aircraft Might Be the One That's Easy To Fly, FAA Documentation Concerns Halt Boeing 787 Deliveries, Piper Reports 15 Percent Rise in Aircraft Deliveries, Cessna Citation Special Olympics Airlift Set to Take Off, Photos: Arizona Storm Destroys Dozens of Airplanes. Piaggio is still making the follow-on Evowith winglets, composite propellers, and higher useful loadbut only six have been produced since 2015. Piaggios appearance at the Singapore Airshow in February lifted hopes somewhat that the design can survive. With all of these maitenence issues and issues regarding fudging pilot hours so they would be legal is scary. I still recall going into one of the back hangers and see MX personal taking parts off of other P180s and putting them on other P180s. This produced a rate of descent of just over 4,000 fpm, the maximum, as there are no flight spoilers and the gear limit is 180 knots. Other parts, mainly fairings and the like, are composite, but for the most part, Piaggio Aeros Avanti II is a sheet metal airplane. That is a sign of a company that cares about its pilots. I flew with him last month. I could see why 380 is a preferred altitude. He sighted the runway at 50 ft above the missed approach point. They "couldnt" find a charter in time (by 2pm as I had to be back), so they put me on American Airlines. It wasnt the only fast turboprop twin with a forward wing the Beech Starship was a contemporary, though that company stopped production of the composite cabin-class twin shortly after it started it, admitting later that the composite model was so time-intensive to build that it was simply unprofitable. Of course, with higher operating weights you wont be able to carry as much fuel or, hence, get as much range, though the truth is that most flights in a 400-knot airplane are less than 1,000 nm anyway, and with a thousand-mile range as the target, you can liberally load the P.180. WebPostaccident examination revealed both nose gear tires were deflated, and the right main tire had low air pressure. Avantair has retained safety expert Nick Sabatini to oversee the project. As far as the crew that experienced the elevator loss, now you will hear the rest of the story.. Due to low ceilings at the destination airport, the crew diverted to the alternate, SAN. We took up a westerly heading for our return to Villanova. Piaggios P180 Avanti created quite a splash with its 1990 certification in the United States. Several years ago I shared a King Air 200 with another company which was great until the partner got into financial trouble and couldn't pay their half. Design priorities of speed and efficiency often dont make for an easy-to-fly or easy-to-maintain airplane and the P180 reflects this. There are more problems than I can fit on this post, but one of the first problems is that these airplanes are flying 2-3 times the hours that Piaggio ever envisioned they would or designed them for. The owners got into another Piaggio and flew again. In reality, the P.180 is a fast, sophisticated, high-flying airplane that requires the same kinds of skills and training as any single-pilot business jet. Well, pretty much all sold out. Thats slightly less than 100 gallons per hour, a figure light jets simply cant touch. These inspections and other actions are still underway. We continued to decelerate and shortly after selecting landing flaps, I turned toward the hillside on my left to line up with the runway as we passed through 600 feet. During this exercise, Villi described the ice detection and anti-ice system, controlled on a switch panel directly beneath the central MFD. Slightly heavy control forces in roll assisted me in flying this accurately. I have only been an owner for a short time but the flights I have taken have been flawless;The pilots seemed happy and very professional. Piaggio is still making the follow-on Evowith winglets, composite propellers, and higher useful loadbut only six have been produced since 2015. Contact me at Atomicapril @ gmail.com. P180 Avanti Pitot and Static System. Though the very basic levers dont look as though they have reverse capability, they do, though it requires a healthy lift on the levers to get them back over the gate to provide propeller braking to slow things down on the ramp and taxiways. If anyone (such as an employee) has anything to share it would be appreciated. WebThe pilot said he was flying the RNAV GPS runway 36 approach in 3 miles visibility and that the wind was from 070 at 9 knots. To remain inside the military area, Villi encouraged me to roll on 45 degrees of bank. In fact, Avantair late last year took possession of the 100th Avanti delivered in the United States, which has been far and away the models best market. Piaggio P.180 AFM TC No. The P180s have a lot of maintenance issues because they are flown to airliner annual times when the planes were only made for a few hundred hours a year with private owners. If the fleet was grounded last saturday then why were pilots sent out assignments to fly? The cabin, interestingly, isnt symmetrical; its a little cozier up front than in back. He descended to 1,000 feet to position for a visual arrival to Runway 10 with a touch-and-go. WebThe Piaggio P180 Avanti II twin-engine turboprop business aircraft is the successor to the P180 Avanti, of which more than 100 have been produced since its entry into service in Luciano Luffarelli, Piaggio Aerospaces head of external communication and institutional affairs, invited AIN to fly the Evo, and the test aircraft, Alpha Sierra Golf, was flown in from Genoa by Lorenzo Villi, head of flight operations. We know this is an extremely difficult period for our loyal employees and frustrating to our devoted owners, said Mr. Santo. For private owners, charter customers and fractional owners, the big cabin is a major selling point. After two major incidents/accidents in eight months are not all fractional owners, their employees and their families scared to hell for their own safety??? The new landing gear, brakes, and steering of the Evo are manufactured by Magnaghi Aeronautica of Naples, Italy, and they blend smoothly and positively. 2023 Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, Air Force looks toward automation with Reliable Robotics, Boeing, NASA to develop sustainable airliner. I stayed on the flight director as we climbed, quickly getting into IMC and getting rapid-fire climb-and-maintain clearances along the way. During the descent, we briefed for some stalls, the handling qualities of which Villi was obviously keen to show me. Most charter operators fly the Avanti II with a crew of two. P180 Avanti Oxygen System. Criminal Records include Lansing arrests, arrest warrants, search warrants, Its also placed very far back on the fuselage, which allows a few important design features. Please specify the source for your statement. View our Piaggio P.180 Avanti II photo gallery. Think of the Avanti II as a jet with props and youll be close to the mark, though in many respects, its not an easy mental shift to make. Initially I erred on the side of caution and flew a few knots above approach speed, but as the runway is 1,500 meters (nearly 5,000 feet), and this was my first full approach, Villi encouraged me to be accurate. The crew brought a crippled aircraft safely to the runway, but departed the runway with the crosswind condition. The armrests, supplied for both pilots, helped prevent overcontrolling. A lot of the airplane have recurring maintenance problems that just get put off until something really breaks and the airplane is grounded. Reaching ahead between the forward cabin bulkhead, he lifted the left-side pilots seat to provide a clear floor area on which to stand. http://aerossurance.com/safety-management/guilty-plea-obstructing-ntsb/, Passenger - Non-Scheduled/charter/Air Taxi, Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency], Updated [Time, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative], Updated [Time, Other fatalities, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative], Updated [Other fatalities, Source, Embed code, Narrative]. Technology and Comfort Piaggio P.180 Avanti: Owner/operator: Avantair Inc: Registration: N146SL: MSN: Merry Christmas, kool-aid drinkers. Passenger oxygen deploys at 13,000 feet. #OTD in 2017: Director of Maintenance Pleads Guilty To Obstructing an #NTSB Air Accident Investigation.https://t.co/P84ir4v0L5 #flightsafety #aviationsafety #aviationmaintenance pic.twitter.com/fA2oHltndZ, This information is added by users of ASN. While its fleet was grounded, Avantair outsourced trips to third-party charter operators or, in some instances, told customers it was unable to conduct their flights, a spokesman told AIN. They offered to find me a charter at MY EXPENSE, which just isn't right. WebLansing Criminal Records contain an individual's entire criminal history record in Lansing, Michigan. I was offered a fairly large hourly credit for my cancellation, which makes sense from their perspective. pilot operation, so when a small amount of fogging briefly appeared on my (right) screen, the clear pattern would allow the left-seat pilot adequate visibility. All this is combined with remarkable versatility, which makes the P180 Avanti II one of the most widely used aircraft in public services such as air ambulance and air rescue missions, law enforce-ment, and flight inspections that ensure the safety of people and property. Once having completed that check, we asked for and got a climb to FL 380, a common long-range cruising altitude for the P.180, which has a ceiling of 41,000 feet. If you feel this information is incomplete or incorrect, you can. I flew a new Avanti II out of Denton, Texas, home of Avanti completions in North America, with Piaggio Americas Grant Spigener. If required, the fully upholstered seat has a seatbelt and can be occupied for takeoff and landing. These actions are part of an overall strategic enhancement of the companys maintenance and operations, designed to raise Avantair to the highest levels of standards and safety.. Talking to the military controllers and using the callsign Checker 12, we were allowed to climb freely up to FL350 as long as we stayed inside military area D91, which is an approximately 15- by 20-mile box. The one posted under SEC filings on www.avantair.com shows a sentence between the last and next to last sentences that is missing from your release. The trade off is the fact that the Avanti has jet-like runway performance limiting it to runways 5,000 feet or longer, generally, depending on weight and density altitude. It is not, at least not primarily. But it didn't help in the fact VNR was born in the Decade from hell. For the past week, we have been undertaking extensive inspections of our fleet and our operating procedures. This press release was issued by Avantair late last night: AVANTAIR UPDATE ON VOLUNTARY STAND-DOWN OF OPERATIONS. Thanks guys, On Saturday, fractional provider Avantair grounded its entire fleet of about 60 Piaggio Avanti twin turboprops to conduct a comprehensive examination of all Grant handled the radio tuning. Pilots are being pushed to the extreme limits of duty time and rest and general morale simply could not be lower company-wide. Along with the wings, the engine inlets and wing leading edge are deiced by bleed air; the tail does without, as do the props, which are heated directly by the engine exhaust blowing over them. So last saturday I was scheduled to fly from Dallas to Las Vegas at noon. A friend owns a I didnt alter it in any way I just cut and pasted what they sent me. The release I posted above came directly from Avantair media relations. Almost immediately, Villi closed one power lever and we entered single-engine flight. Everyone at Owner Services couldn't have been nicer and the vast majority of the pilots were courteous and very professional, and I had zero complaints with them. Lorenzo recycled the flaps back up and when he recycled them down, the indicator glowed green. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. The airplane has been constantly improved over the past decade, with new interiors, higher max takeoff weight, higher Vmo and avionics upgrades galore. Like the Starship, the Piaggio Avanti features a canard and rear-mounted engines. But the Avanti is made mostly of aluminum, not composites. It weighs thousands of pounds less than the Starship and is about 60 m.p.h. faster. ^ Martin, Ed (29 October 1989). Max takeoff weight / 12,100 lbs I found a new job about 4 weeks later! Now I find out this has been an issue for several days but they have not sent out any communications to the owners mentioning this issue, nor is it mentioned on their website. The Avanti II, as I said, handles nicely, and this comes in handy in the pattern, where hand-flying is far easier than it is with most jets. Anyone have any or both of these checkists? This airframe, T7-ASG, SN3007 was the first Avanti to be produced at the new manufacturing facility in Villanova DAlbenga, one year after production was moved from Genoa. The twin turboprop Avanti EVO is the third-generation version of the Piaggios Avanti P.180, a model introduced in the 1990s that led to the creation of Piaggio Aero Industries. When I did, I asked about why I was paying for it, and was told "Well we usually do, but this time we were instructed otherwise.". Its also remarkably wide for an airplane of its size. General Data Sheet No. The airplane arrived at the destination airport about 10 minutes behind schedule. The flare required is very small, just enough to cushion the touchdown, so the nose drops very quickly to the runway. This is another advantage of a turboprop. Any altimeter setting mismatch is shown by a yellow line beneath the altimeter setting on the PFD, and the pressurized cabin is set to climb at 300 fpm. The difference between the two, they say, is that the forward wing, while a lifting surface, is not a controllable one. At that level we were seeing 380 knots or Mach 0.664 on 600 pounds of jet-A per hour, not per side but total. Really thinking nothing of it, I booked a flight from LAS to Orange COunty Ca today (coming back tomorrow). On approach, however, the view is excellent. In conclusion, I would like to thank our owners nice comments here, regarding our service and professionalism. However, the pilot did not report any pre-accident mechanical malfunction or anomaly with the airplane that may have precluded normal operation. At 10:30 I was contacted and told that my flight had been cancelled, and that they would be looking at both charter and commercial flights at their expense. In attempting to understand the Piaggio P.180 Avanti II, you need to begin by forgetting everything you thought you knew about turboprop-powered airplanes. We are not infallible, and mistakes have definitely been made, but we do not deserve the acrid bile from those on this board who have obvious agendas and would celebrate our downfall. So happy I left this rag tag joint when I did! Piaggios appearance at the Singapore Airshow in February lifted hopes somewhat that the design can survive. Pilatus PC-12 or Piaggio P.180 Checklist? Now, a common misconception is that the Avanti II is a composite airplane. Ask about it and was told they didn't want to buy replacement parts. Both crews included experienced professionals that could have easily been flying somewhere else. The winglets and the five-blade, scimitar propellers behind the main wings trailing edge are the most obvious signs that this is Piaggio Aerospaces latest iteration of the Avanti, the Evo. 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