INDIAN RIVER COUNTY – Piper Aircraft, Inc. and Continental Motors Group have collaborated to obtain a European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) Supplemental Type Certificate for Piper Archer aircraft powered by the Centurion 2.0S diesel engine.
The prototype aircraft, which was test flown to obtain EASA approval, is on display at Piper’s Halle A4-121 exhibit April 9-12 during Aero Friedrichshafen, Germany, the global show for general aviation.
Following the exhibition the Centurion-powered Piper Archer will begin a marketing and demonstration tour throughout Europe, including Germany, Spain, France, Italy and the United Kingdom.
“This milestone development by Piper and Continental represents a continuation of Piper’s strategy to provide multiple fuel solutions for our customers,” said Piper President and CEO Simon Caldecott. “This is the next step in ensuring that future Piper owners and operators have access to more economical and readily available fuel supplies, especially in Europe where traditional leaded avgas is hard to find and expensive.”
“Working together Continental and Piper Aircraft have taken the next step in proving the viability of Centurion 2.0S diesel powered Piper Archers,” said Technify Motors GmbH Managing Director and President Ken Suda. Technify Motors is the German operating unit of Continental Motors Group specialized in diesel propulsion systems like the Centurion.
Ground and flight tests on the Piper Archer, powered by a Centurion 155 horsepower Jet-A compression ignition engine, were conducted by the companies from Technify’s airport facility at Altenburg, Germany. Technify’s Centurion 2.0S engine is certified to use both Jet-A and diesel fuel and with the two fuels in any mixture ratio.
The company has a long history with Piper aircraft. The first aircraft to fly with the Centurion 1.7 was a Piper Warrior which obtained the certification in 2001.
Caldecott said Piper is working to ensure its customers have more than one engine solution for various flight operating regimes and multiple platforms for various pilot training curricula. The first deliveries of the Archer DX are expected to begin in Q1 of 2015 at a standard equipped price of $399,495.
Piper’s aircraft platforms include single, multi-engine, complex and standard entry-level trainers for a comprehensive range of global training requirements.
