A start-up headed by former Cessna chief executive Jack Pelton has launched a remanufactured version of the Cessna 421 with upgraded engines and avionics.
The Excalibur 421 is scheduled to enter service by end-year equipped with Pratt & Whitney PT6A-135A turboprop engines, Hartzell Q-tip propellers, winglets and a Garmin avionics suite, says manufacturer Aviation Alliance.
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Ahunt/Wikipedia The Excalibur is a remanufactured Cessna 421 powered by two Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-135A turboprops |
The Excalibur improves the speed and range of Cessna's pressurized light-twin, which was introduced in 1967 and sold more than 1,900 copies.
Aviation Alliance has priced the Excalibur 421 at $2.5 million, with deliveries from the Oklahoma Jet Support Center and Capital Aviation in Oklahoma City.
"There's nothing flying that can come close to the value proposition and performance that we're offering," says Pelton, managing director of operations for Aviation Alliance.
The group says it manages "various programmes" that remanufacture and upgrade existing aircraft, but provided no other details.
The Federal Aviation Administration says it reissued the type certificate for the PT6-powered Cessna 421 to a group called "Excalibur 421 LLC" on 19 July 2012.
Source: Flight International
