The Civil Aviation Safety Authority and the US Federal Aviation Administration have both issued FAR23 type certificates for the GippsAero Airvan 10 single-engined turbo-prop.
The Airvan 10 has been in development for several years, and is designed to fill the market gap between the Airvan 8 and Cessna 206, and the higher-end turbo-props such as the Cessna C208 Caravan range and the Quest Kodiak 100.
The CEO of GippsAero, Keith Douglas, welcomed this recognition of achievement as an opportunity to progress into the next stage of the program and then on to delivery of the first aircraft to customers by the fourth quarter of 2017.
"GippsAero/Mahindra 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," Douglas said.
"The first production aircraft, which participated in the flight test program along with the experimental prototype, will be undertaking demonstration and familiarisation tasks commencing in July of this year, and throughout the third quarter of 2017."
The Rolls-Royce M250 powered Airvan 10 follows in the footsteps of the piston-engine, eight-seat Airvan 8, which is now operating in 40 countries,
Not only does the Airvan 10 provide a larger aircraft option for customers, but also runs on turbine fuel rather than avgas, which is becoming in short supply in many regions around the world.
A full review and test flight of the Airvan 10 is in the upcoming July-August print issue of Australian Flying.