The first Avanti Evo to be produced at Piaggio Aerospace’s new manufacturing facility in Villanova D’Albenga, southwest of Genoa, has been handed over to its owner, the Al Saif Group.
The real estate and consultancy company was appointed by Piaggio in July as its sales agent for the twin-pusher turboprop in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Iraq, Kuwait, Oman and Qatar.
Piaggio Aerospace
Headquartered in Riyadh, Al Saif will use the VIP-configured Evo for customer demonstration flights and ad hoc charter. The company is scheduled to take delivery of a second unit in 2017, which will be deployed for medical evacuation services.
Piaggio, which is wholly owned by the Abu Dhabi investment house Mubadala Development Company, opened the Villanova D’Albenga plant a year ago, but teething problems with the final assembly line have hampered production output.
Assembly of the six-passenger aircraft continued at Piaggio's former home in Genoa until January, when the final unit rolled off the line. This site had produced around 220 Avantis, spanning all three generations of the distinctive turboprop.
Source: Flight International
