Aircraft to Support Academy’s Multi-Engine Curriculum

On Tuesday, 28 March 2023, Diamond Aircraft—the Austria-based, Chinese-owned maker of general aviation aircraft with manufacturing facilities in Wiener Neustadt, Austria and London, Ontario, Canada—announced a new strategic partnership with United Airlines’ Aviate Academy. Per the partnership’s provisions, the Goodyear, Arizona-based flight academy will acquire five new jet-fuel-powered DA42-VI twin-engine-aircraft.

The partnership—which more so resembles a firm order—will see the first of the five DA42-VI aircraft delivered at 2023’s SUN ‘n FUN Aerospace Expo in Lakeland, Florida. The remaining four aircraft are slated to be delivered by the end of 2023’s second quarter.

United Aviate Academy CEO Dana Donati stated: “We are excited to incorporate the DA42-VI Diamond Aircraft as our multi-engine trainer to our growing fleet. With its advanced aircraft systems and performance, the DA42-VI provides us the unique opportunity to prepare our pilots for the next steps in their careers while honoring our commitment to using the most sophisticated training aircraft on the market today.”

Diamond Aircraft Canada head of sales and marketing Trevor Mustard remarked: “We are very pleased to have partnered with United Aviate as they continue to grow. Their mission to provide world-class flight training through equal opportunity initiatives will further incentivize a broader spectrum of student pilots and help meet the demand at the airline level. Diamond is proud to be part of United Aviate’s new endeavor as it trains the pilots of tomorrow with the safest, most sustainable twins on the market today.”

The 4-seat, twin-engine DA42-VI is the most recent iteration of Diamond’s DA42 piston twin family of aircraft and features an all-composite airframe and Garmin’s G1000 NXi avionics suite with 3-axis Automatic Flight Control System and optional electrically powered air conditioning. The aircraft is powered by a pair of Austro Engine AE3t00 Jet-Fuel-burning piston engines, each outputting a maximum of 170-horsepower. The powerplants are mated to MT 3-blade, constant-speed propellers.

The DA42-VI’s performance is excellent—for a light piston-twin airplane. At its 4,407-pound Maximum Gross Takeoff Weight (MGTOW) the aircraft retains a 1,298-pound useful load comprising 76.4-gallons (519.52-pounds) of Jet-A. So loaded and fueled, the DA42-VI’s advertised range is 1,273-nautical-miles at its economy (sixty-percent-power) cruise speed of 152-knots. The airplane’s maximum speed is 188-knots; its dual and single-engine service-ceilings are FL180 and 16,000-feet respectively. At the low-end of its performance envelope, the DA42-VI acquits itself admirably with a Vso stall-speed of docile 62-knots.

With north of 1,100 specimens delivered since its 2004 introduction, the DA42, in all its variants, has outsold all other certified piston twins combined. The machine, by dint of its performance, utility, and ability to transition between twin and single-engine flight without excessive shock-cooling of the throttled-back engine, has proved a safe, robust, and reliable multi-engine training platform

The DA42-VI occasions fuel savings of up to fifty-percent over conventional AVGAS powered twins and its panoramic canopy—a boon in busy flight-training environments—affords excellent visibility throughout all flight maneuvers.

FMI: www.unitedaviate.com