After completing the test flights, Piaggio Aerospace delivered to the Italian Air Force three P.180 Avanti EVO+, the iconic 9-seater aircraft designed and assembled by Piaggio Aerospace in its facilities located in Villanova d’Albenga and Genoa.
The three aircraft, which will be assigned to the Air Transport Training School (S.A.T.A.) of the Italian Air Force in Pratica di Mare (Rome), are the first of the 15 brand-new P.180 Avanti EVO+ presently ordered and contractualized by the Italian Armed Forces as part of a modernization programme of the whole fleet, which also includes the retrofit of some additional aircraft currently in service. Piaggio Aerospace expects to deliver one more new aircraft and a retrofitted one by February 2025.
The Piaggio P.180 Avanti EVO for the Italian Air Force should be among the first nine aircraft. The Air Force will receive five P180 EVO+ (standard) and four P180 EVO+ in the Radio Misure (radio and radar calibration) configuration, replacing the four aircraft currently in use by the 71st Flight Group based at Pratica di Mare Air Base, near Rome. The destination of the second batch of six aircraft is not yet known.
Both the new and the modernized aircraft carry an original configuration that Piaggio Aerospace engineered and certified based on the most recent aviation technology. Renovated avionics and new landing gears equipped with cutting-edge antiskid, braking and steering systems are some of the innovations introduced.
Some months ago, Piaggio Aerospace returned a wholly upgraded and certified P.180 “Avanti I” (the first release of the aircraft) to the Armed Forces. The new configuration is now called Avanti II+.
The Piaggio P180 Avanti is an Italian executive transport aircraft with two turboprop engines mounted in a pusher configuration. It can accommodate up to nine people in a pressurized cabin and can be flown by one or two pilots. The design has a three-surface configuration, with a small front wing and a conventional tailplane as well as the main wing, with the main wing spars passing behind the passenger cabin area.
The P180 Avanti EVO is a third-generation aircraft and was announced in 2014. The EVO is capable of a top speed of 745 km/h, making it the world’s fastest multi-utility turboprop. It incorporates updated features that increase efficiency, improve safety and comfort, as well as reduce operating costs.
The new variant offers increased range, faster climb, a smaller noise footprint, high-level safety systems and a more spacious cabin. It also features lower emissions and improved fuel economy thanks to the use of new Hartzell composite propellers with scimitar-shaped blades. The first Piaggio P180 Avanti EVO was delivered in April 2015.