Piaggio P.180 Avanti
From Canadian Power Wiki
The Piaggio P.180 Avanti is an Italian executive transport aircraft with twin turboprop engines mounted in pusher configuration. It seats up to nine people in a pressurized cabin, and may be flown by one or two pilots. The design is of three-surface configuration, having both a small forward wing and a conventional tailplane as well as its main wing, with the main wing spars passing behind the passenger cabin area.
Variants[edit | edit source]
- P.180 Avanti: First production variant.
- P.180 M: Military version with a combination passenger/freighter configuration for use as a VIP and light utility transport.
- P.180 RM: Variant for use in radio calibration.
- P.180 AMB: Air ambulance variant.
- P.180 APH: Aerial cartography.
- P.180 Avanti II: Variant with improved avionics and engines.
- EVO: Variant with 400kt TAS and higher useful load.
- Multirole Patrol Aircraft: Initially called Maritime Patrol Aircraft, MPA is a variant of the Avanti II with a larger wingspan and bigger fuel tanks. As with the EVO propulsion system, MPA uses more powerful Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-66B engines and Hartzell five-blade scimitar propellers. MPA electronics include the Albatros mission mystem from Saab Group and Pro Line Fusion avionics from Rockwell Collins.
- Piaggio-Selex P.1HH Hammerhead: Medium-altitude long-endurance unmanned aerial vehicle based on the Avanti II airframe, with an increased wingspan and the ability to carry up to 1,100 pounds (500 kg) of weapons. The P.1HH HammerHead Mission Management System is based on the Selex ES (now Leonardo S.p.A.) skyISTAR solution. The vehicle's first flight took place in December 2013 from Trapani–Birgi Italian Air Force base. The Italian Air Force signed an agreement with Piaggio Aerospace to buy three Unmanned Aerial System P.1HH HammerHead (six aircraft and three ground control stations) with delivery starting from the early months of 2016. The United Arab Emirates Air Force ordered eight P.1HH aircraft. On May 31st 2016 the first P.1HH prototype crashed off the Sicilian coast, delaying flight testing for thirteen months during construction of a second prototype. Piaggio flew the second prototype at Trapani–Birgi military airport on July 5th 2017. The UAE was to take delivery of six P.1HHs in 2018 and the remaining two in 2019, however by November 2018, no P.1HHs had been delivered and Piaggio Aerospace requested to be placed into receivership.
- P.2HH: Piaggio developed with Leonardo, the Italian and UAE Armed Forces, a P.1HH successor for 2023, with a new wing, more composite materials, and re-thought systems. With a larger wing and airframe, maximum endurance rose to 30h.
Users[edit | edit source]
- Bulgaria
- Bulgarian Air Force
- Canada
- Royal Canadian Mounted Police
- Italy
- Italian Armed Forces
- Aeronautica Militare
- Esercito Italiano
- Marina Militare
- Carabinieri
- Corps of the Port Captaincies – Coast Guard
- Ente Nazionale per l'Assistenza al Volo
- Guardia di Finanza
- Polizia di Stato
- State Forestry Corps
- Vigili del Fuoco
- Italian Armed Forces
- Poland
- Polish Medical Air Rescue
- Russia
- Federal State Unitary Enterprise
- United Arab Emirates
- United Arab Emirates Air Force
