Four-Place Airplane Targeted At The Flight Training Market

Italian airplane manufacturer Vulcanair has made good on a promise it made at AirVenture in July and achieved FAA certification of its V1.0 four-place airplane it hopes to bring to the U.S. market as a training aircraft.

The V1.0 resembles a Cessna 172, but the company says that it will cost as much as $100,000 less than the Textron product, as well as the Piper Archer popular with flight schools.

According to the Vulcanair website, the V1.0 is powered by the 180 hp Lycoming IO-360-M1A that is capable of running with AvGas or alternative fuels. The aircraft is offered with a either a fixed-pitch of constant-speed propeller.

One major difference between the 172 and the Vulcanair V1.0 is that the Italian airplane has three doors. The separate luggage compartment can carry 88 pounds. The aircraft cockpit has been designed to keep all the commands and switches and circuit breakers in an ergonomic position for the pilot.

The empty weight of the V1.0 is 1,627 pounds, with a MTOW of 2,546 pounds. The company lists the cruise speed of the airplane a 130 knots, and a maximum range of 591 nautical miles with a 45-minute reserve. Wing fuel tanks will carry 50 U.S. gallons of fuel.

The standard avionics package of choice features a Garmin G500 coupled with a GTN650 unit and a JPI digital engine monitoring system. Mid Continent's latest digital back-up digital instrument (SAM) is offered standard in the aircraft package as well as an AoA (angle of attack indicator). An optional full IFR version is also available.

EASA certified the V1.0 in 2013.

(Image provided by Vulcanair)

FMI: www.vulcanair.com