The first P-Mentors handed to HCH Aviation for Stephen F. Austin State University.

Capua, Italy., May 30, 2024 – Tecnam Aircraft today announced the commencement of customer deliveries for the revolutionary P-Mentor Single Engine IFR Part 23 Certified Two Seat Platform.

“Beginning P-Mentor customer deliveries less than one month after achieving Federal Aviation Administration Type Certification marks another incredible milestone of raising the bar for the General Aviation Marketplace”, said Giovanni Pascale Langer, Managing Director, Tecnam Aircraft. “The P-Mentor has already begun to transform the training marketplace around the world as Flight Schools recognize that they cannot continue to operate legacy aircraft. The P-Mentor offers a unique combination of unparalleled safety, performance and cost-effectiveness.”

This innovative aircraft is equipped with the latest Garmin G3X Touch Screen avionics suite, providing students and instructors with a modern and intuitive interface to enhance the flight training experience.

“Since 1948, Tecnam has always been at the forefront of aviation innovation,” said Walter Da Costa, Chief Sales Officer . “With the P-Mentor, we are setting a new standard in the IFR training environment, offering a aircraft that not only meets but exceeds the rigorous demands of the aviation training community.”

The P-Mentor offers a very low fuel consumption of (3.7 GPH) while delivering a high level of cost efficiency allowing for all day training without having to stop for re fueling thus reducing costs as well as ground and operational interruptions.

“Today marks not only a monumental day for Tecnam but also for our Flight Program in partnership with Stephen F. Austin University. The delivery of the P-Mentor caps off our conversion of our fleet to an all inclusive Tecnam Flight Program. The innovation, low operational cost and aerodynamics of this platform are perfect for our Students and our operations. This combined with the reliability of the Tecnam Aircraft made it a very easy decision to choose the P-Mentor”, said Kristen Conklin, President; HCH Aviation.

Along with the delivery of the aircraft, a maintenance and familiarization course was also provided to the technicians and pilots.

The Two Seat Platform will revolutionize the world of instrumental flight training.

CAPUA – Tecnam announced today that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has awarded full Type Certificate to the P-MENTOR with the number A00067IB for Part 23 of the FAA Regulations.

Tecnam is now on track to begin deliveries to flight schools across the United States, starting with the first (20) to HCH Aviation in partnership with Stephen F. Austin State University in Austin, Texas, followed by Kilo Charlie Aviation in New Century, Kansas and EpicSky Flight Academy in Des Moines, Iowa.

About the P-Mentor

The P-Mentor is a two-seat aircraft, powered by the Rotax 912isC3, featuring the Garmin G3X IFR touch screen suite with PBN/RNAV/AFCS capabilities, compliant with the latest CS-23 EASA & FAA amendments. The Mentor is a turnkey solution for many flight schools to train students from their first flight up to their CPL-IR on a single platform. With a variable pitch propeller, a simulated retractable landing gear and an optional ballistic parachute, the P-Mentor has everything flight schools are looking for in today’s market. The P-Mentor is designed to offer the best human-machine interface, resulting in the most effective and efficient VFR/IFR training. The generous fuel capacity will allow flight schools to fly all day without refueling, which improves operational value. The P-Mentor’s fuel consumption is just 3.70 US Gal/h (14 lt/h) contributing to a very low cost of operations averaging $65 per hour.

The P-Mentor allows complete PPL, IR and UPRT training, with approved PBN/RNAV as well as AFCS: the entire training syllabus with unprecedented fuel consumption and emissions, further enhancing the renowned profitability of Tecnam-made fleet.

More info on the P-Mentor: https://tecnam.com/aircraft/pmentor/

The entry into service of the P-MENTOR two-seater IFR training aircraft has been eagerly awaited by a large number of flight schools who have been demanding a replacement for the many hundreds of “legacy” FAR23/CS23 IFR training aircraft currently in service around the world. This aircraft will open up many profitable opportunities within the flight training market and revolutionize the training paradigm.

With the P-Mentor, Tecnam is once again confirming its leadership in flight training while innovating the market and raising the standards. This important certification milestone will create and secure new and significant revenue streams for Tecnam, built on a foundation of over 75 years of aircraft manufacturing.

To date, more than a hundred P-Mentors have been delivered in (18) countries around the world, proving that this platform fits different business plans in different weather environments. Flight schools are changing the composition of their fleet, using the P-Mentor for initial and IFR training and the P2006T for multi-engine training.

Tecnam’s Managing Director, Giovanni Pascale Langer says: “The FAA certification of the P-MENTOR is another significant milestone for the Tecnam team. We look forward to working with all US flight schools to improve the quality of training and help them keep hourly rates low.”

The Tecnam fleet is perfect for the today modern school as their aircraft offer the best efficiency, performance and value while meeting the latest certification standards with a unique feature as ‘the greenest fleet on the market. Efficiency that also means very low CO₂ emissions. Recent study shows that flight schools operating with TECNAM single and twin-engine fleet can reduce emissions by up to 60%: 10 tons of CO₂ for each student by the time they receive their Commercial Pilot License (www.Tecnam.com/soar-greener).

The new Tecnam two-seater IFR launched during EAA Air Venture at Oshkosh

Oshkosh – Tecnam unveiled today the P-Mentor to North American pilots at the Tecnam display at Oshkosh. Already a best-seller in the European training market, the aircraft is set to revolutionize the American training paradigm and personal flying marketplace. This modern aircraft represents the pinnacle of engineering excellence, offering superior flight performance, state-of-the-art technology with Garmin avionics, and unparalleled low operating cost and CO2 emissions.

About the P-Mentor

The P-Mentor is a two-seat aircraft, powered by a Rotax 912 Is, fully IFR with PBN/RNAV/AFCS capabilities, compliant with the latest CS-23 EASA & FAA amendments. The Mentor is a turnkey solution for many flight schools to train students from their first flight up to their CPL-IR on a single platform. With a variable pitch propeller, a simulated retractable landing gear and an optional ballistic parachute, the P-Mentor has everything flight schools were looking for in today’s market. The P-Mentor is designed to offer the best human-machine interface, resulting in the most effective and efficient VFR/IFR training. The generous fuel tanks allow flight schools to fly all day without refueling, which improves operational value. It has low fuel consumption of 3.70 US Gal/h (14 lt/h) and a low cost of operations with an average of $65 per hour.

More info on the P-Mentor: https://tecnam.com/aircraft/pmentor/

During the ceremony, Tecnam also disclosed the launch customers that will be using the P-Mentor for their flying school needs: Kansas based Kilo Charlie Aviation, Vermont Flight Academy, Melbourne Flight Training in Florida, Stephen F. Austin State University, based in Texas and EpicSky Flight Academy in Iowa.

Walter Da Costa, Tecnam’s Chief Sales Officer said “We are very excited to launch the P-Mentor in the United States, during Oshkosh 2023. Our fleet solution is unique in the market, ensuring reliability, cost control, intelligent training and low emissions. Together with the most prestigious flight schools, we are proud to innovate the flight training paradigm in the USA”.

Kristen Conklin – President, HCH Aviation: “After flying the Tecnam Aircraft in our fleet there was no question which aircraft that we would choose to expand our Collegiate Flight Training Program.  The P-Mentor is the perfect choice due to its unmatched flying capabilities and super low operating economics.”

Tom D’Orso – Executive Director; Vermont Flight Academy stated, “the P-Mentor will be a game changer for our Flight Academy. We currently fly a mix of aircraft and the P-Mentor will replace our legacy aircraft and offer our students a current innovative training platform that meets the requirements of both the business plan and student growth forecast at Vermont Flight Academy.”

“We have been in a two-year process trying to find the right aircraft partner for our career flight training school. Once Tecnam presented the P-Mentor we knew that all the work over the last two years had to be re-evaluated and compared to this aircraft. Safety and Technology are our two highest priorities here and after comparing everything it was without a doubt the best option for our school and students.” Robert Renfro, Kilo Charlie Aviation Chief Operating Officer said.

Tradition, innovation and vision. Those factors are spearheading Tecnam to wider horizons. Based on recent data and industry benchmarks, Tecnam is offering the greenest training fleet in the world. Flight schools operating Tecanm’s single- and twin-engine fleet can save as much as 10 tonnes of CO2 emissions for every single student graduating with a Commercial Pilot License – a 60% reduction compared to fleet using 100LL fuel on a journey of 155 flight hours, 30h of which on twin www.Tecnam.com/soar-greener.

The Kansas flying academy placed an order for 30 aircraft.

CAPUA – Tecnam announced today that Kilo Charlie Aviation has placed orders for a total of 30 Tecnam aircraft over the next two years.

Kilo Charlie Aviation is located near Kansas City at New Century Air Center, formerly known as Naval Air Station Olathe, a joint civil-military general aviation airport. The school has 96 students and was founded in 2020 by Robert Renfro and Drew Konicek, experienced pilots.

The Tecnam solution selected by Kilo Charlie Aviation is based on the full IFR P-Mentor and the twin-engine P2006T.

Students start their training in a P-Mentor with a modern Garmin G3x glass cockpit. In addition to an already very stable platform, the aircraft will be equipped with the optional BRS ballistic parachute. After completing their instrument rating (IFR) in the P-Mentor, students can transition into the P2006T twin engine to train for their MEP (Multi Engine Propeller).

The first of 15 deliveries will be 3 P2006T and 12 P-Mentor aircraft. Phase II of 30 aircraft will follow after the last of these first 15 have been delivered.

About the P-Mentor

The P-Mentor is a two-seat, single engine, piston, fully IFR aircraft, compliant with the latest CS-23 EASA & FAA requirements, allowing PBN/RNAV/AFCS capabilities. It gives modern flight schools a single platform to train students from their first flight, up to their commercial pilot license, and instrument rating. It has a variable pitch propeller, and a simulated retractable landing gear option.

The P-Mentor is designed to offer the best human-machine interface, resulting in the most effective VFR/IFR training. The generous fuel tank allows flight schools to fly all day long, without refueling, which improves operational value. With its outstanding operational cost, this aircraft offers a unique profit opportunity for flight schools.

More info on the P-Mentor: https://tecnam.com/aircraft/pmentor/

About the P-2006T

The Tecnam P2006T MkII is a twin-engine four-seat aircraft with fully retractable landing gear.  Its simplicity, great performance, efficiency and ergonomics are what make this aircraft ideal for multi-engine training, as well as cross-country flying.  The P2006T offers unbeatable value and innovative design with a modern Garmin avionics suite, integrating all primary flight, navigation, communication and terrain data on two high-definition LCDs.

More info on the P2006T: https://tecnam.com/aircraft/p2006t/

“We are very pleased that so many American flight schools are choosing TECNAM to replace or upgrade their fleet. Today’s students are very demanding and deserve a brand new aircraft with the latest technology. We thank and welcome Kilo Charlie for their choice”. Walter Da Costa, Tecnam Chief Sales Officer, said.

“We have been in a two-year process trying to find the right aircraft partner for our career flight training school. Once Tecnam presented the P-mentor we knew that all the work over the last two years had to be re-evaluated and compared to this aircraft. Safety and Technology are our two highest priorities here and after comparing everything it was without a doubt the best option for our school and students.” Robert Renfro, Kilo Charlie Aviation Chief Operating Officer said.

“When we met with Tecnam for the first time we were unfamiliar with their organization or aircraft. Immediately we knew that we had found a true partner. The award-winning aircraft combined with the expertise of an international leader in aviation made it an easy choice to move Kilo Charlie Aviation’s fleet to Tecnam.” Said Drew Konicek, Kilo Charlie Aviation Chief Business Officer

“With a shared ambition for developing great pilots, we are thrilled to partner with Kilo Charlie Aviation in this venture! It is because of flight schools like theirs that this industry has such a promising future.

Kilo Charlie’s training program offers students a competitive advantage for hiring opportunities once they graduate and I can’t think of a better place for our latest Tecnam training fleet!”. Derek Riddle, Director of Aircraft Fleet Sales for Volare Air said.

Tecnam and Kilo Charlie Aviation will be at the next EAA Oshkosh 2023.

For further details of the extensive range of Tecnam aircraft, please email: info@tecnam.com

About Kilo Charlie Aviation

Robert Renfro and Drew Konicek, experienced commercial and corporate pilots, founded Kilo Charlie Aviation in 2020. Their goal: to build the best flight school in the world. Today, Kilo Charlie Aviation, centrally located in New Century, KS, the heart of the Midwest, is recognized as the premier school for all levels of flight training. Students from all over the United States come to Kilo Charlie Aviation to earn their private pilot certificate, obtain their instrument rating, become certified flight instructors, and learn about flight at all levels.

https://flykilocharlie.com/