Cape Air anticipates taking delivery of its first eight Tecnam P2012 Traveller aircraft in January or February of 2019.
The company will initially keep the 11-seater close to its headquarters in Hyannis, Massachusetts, operating the twin piston-engine aircraft on routes within New England to destinations such as Cape Cod, Nantucket, Martha’s Vineyard, Vermont and Maine.
Cape Air wants to keep the aircraft near its home base while it trains pilots and maintenance technicians, said Cape Air President Linda Markham at the annual Regional Airline Association conference.
“We are going to have someone on site for the first year from Tecnam,” she says. “As we get more airplanes, we will start to diversify and put them in more regions.”
Tecnam P2012 Traveller Credit: Tecnam
The airline has placed 20 firm orders for the Italian-built P2012 Traveller, with the option to purchase up to 100 in total. Cape Air is the Traveller’s launch customer and co-developed the aircraft with Tecnam.
“We are operating it as a [Part] 135,” says Markham. “So, the right seat will not be able to be sold as a passenger seat, but we will be able to have a first officer in that seat. So, it’s really good to be able to continue with our farm programme to be able to continue building pilots.”
In August, Tecnam told FlightGlobal that three P2012 Travellers were in production at its Capua headquarters near Naples, Italy and the aircraft was on track for certification in late 2018.
Source: Cirium Dashboard
