Deliveries And Revenue Continue To Rise in First Half 2012

By John Ylinen

There aren't a lot of aviation companies that make it to 75 years old, but on Monday at AirVenture, Piper CEO Simon Caldecott provided an update held a news conference to He discussed the 75th Anniversary of the company and the Piper Cub; noting the arrival of 75 in one flight on Sunday. He said over 125 cubs had arrived as of Monday morning. He indicated that over 85,000 cubs are still flying. Editorial note; It would have made for an exciting announcement to hear that Piper was going to upgrade them and start producing since they hold the type certificate.

Mr. Caldecott also discussed deliveries and revenue this year. Piper has delivered 76 aircraft so far with total revenue of $69 million. Their Meridian and Mirage continue to be the major sales. 54% of their sales have been overseas. Piper completed delivery of 18 Piper Warriors to the government flight school at Budiarto Airport in Curug, Indonesia. This is one of the first deliveries of training aircraft since Piper announce they were not going to focus on training fleets. Something Mr. Caldecott said was not going to continue. He stated, “We are back in the training business.”

Another announcement by Mr. Caldecott was that Piper Aircraft, Inc. has reached a 10-year agreement with Pratt & Whitney Canada (P&WC) for the continuing purchase of PT6A-42A turboprop engines to power Piper’s flagship aircraft, the single-engine M-Class Meridian. Piper is adding the Kelly Aerospace ThermaCool air conditioning system to new 2012 twin-engine Piper Seminoles and making the system available via retrofit for the Seminole fleet.

Caldecott (pictured) noted that EAA AirVenture 2012 will be the launch site for a multi-state demonstration tour for the Piper Seneca V, a twin-engine turbocharged aircraft that is larger yet less expensive to buy and operate than its nearest high-performance competitor. “For well under a million dollars, the Seneca V gives you a turbocharged twin that has higher payload, carries more fuel, delivers better performance and efficiency, has a wider, longer cabin, and a single-engine ceiling that is higher than twins which cost $400,000 more,” said Piper Head of Global Sales and Business Development Drew McEwen. “In addition, the turbo Seneca V has better takeoff and landing performance, especially from hot and high locations.”

FMI: www.piper.com