An order for nine Avanti EVO twin turbo-props signed just days before Christmas looks set to revitalise Piaggio Aerospace and resurrect aircraft manufacture.
The contract with the Italian defence force is worth around €196 million.
Piaggio Aerospace has been under administration since declaring insolvency in November 2018 and was put on the open market in May last year.
The agreement provides for the Italian manufacturer to produce and deliver five airframes airplanes in passenger transport and ambulance configuration and four aircraft for flight inspection over four years. Under the same contract, Piaggio Aerospace will retrofit a P.180 already operated by Italian Armed Forces. The value of the aircraft and retrofit has been put at €130 million.
According to the agreement, the ministry will also finalise a commitment within two years for the retrofitting of more than 18 aircraft currently with the police, Army, Navy and the Air Force. This will guarantee Piaggio Aerospace a further €66 million in turnover, bringing the contract total to €196 million.
"The order [in December] –just one year after the extraordinary administration started–is the result of the joint and generous effort of all parties involved: the Italian Government, the Armed Forces and local Institutions,” said Piaggio Aerospace Extraordinary Commissioner Vincenzo Nicastro.
“This represents for Piaggio Aerospace a turning point: with the restart of aircraft production, we will also be able to gradually reintegrate workers currently into temporary layoffs. Nevertheless, we are not going to stop here. We will continue to work on the private market, with the aim of finalising new, significant orders.
"In the meantime, we are almost ready to launch the tender for the sale of the company's assets," he added, "which we plan to publish after the Christmas break."
Piaggio built its first aeroplane in 1922, but figures from the General Aviation Manufacturers Association show that the company had reported only four deliveries for 2018 and a further two only to the end of September 2019.