Having hopped Kangaroo-like from Victoria, Australia on a five-day, six-leg journey, the Gippsland Aeronautics GA-8 Airvan touched down in Singapore yesterday to make its debut at an international airshow.
A tired but delighted Michael Hall, managing director of Australia's only commercial aircraft manufacturer, stepped off the aircraft, a day later than planned. "We hit some bad, cyclonic weather between Alice Springs and Darwin so we lost a bit of time but otherwise it was an excellent journey," he says.
Within minutes of exiting the Airvan, Hall was talking to potential customers from the region. "We had people from Thailand, China and Indonesia within the first half hour," he adds.
The aircraft left Latrobe Regional Airport on 20 February on the 8,000km journey which included stop-overs in Alice Springs, Darwin and Jakarta.
The high wing aircraft is described by Hall as an "eight-seater with attitude". Powered by a Lycoming IO 540 K1A5 engine it has a nine-hour 930nm (1,720km) range. Eight years in the planning, the second production model received type certification last December.
Attitude
"It's an inexpensive people mover or alternatively can be used for carrying a payload of almost a tonne of freight. Its ability to operate on short airstrips in basic conditions makes it ideal for tourist operators in remote areas," Hall says.
He is determined to carve out a place for Gippsland in the world aviation market despite a domestic industry seemingly in decline. He projects production of 50 aircraft a year from the end of 2002 and says he's currently inundated with enquiries.
"The Airvan is easy to maintain, it has been designed to be maintained in the field and it's inexpensive to operate compared with its competitors. It retails for around $20,000 less than its nearest competitor.
"For overseas operators, who also benefit from the low Australian dollar, it's a very attractive proposition. For tour operators it's the profit margin that counts and this is where the Airvan can certainly deliver."
The GA-8 is already starting to make its mark in the export market. Gippsland has secured orders for 19 aircraft from international tourist operators in the past six months.
The first export Airvan is already operating in Belize in Central America. Later in 2002 Airvans will operate from Indonesia, Canada, Mozambique and South Africa.
Source: Flight Daily News
