AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2014 - 34

PILOT BRIEFING
|

FIRST LOOK

PIPISTREL PANTHERA

Wings in waiting
New four-seaters on their way

SPECS

Full-fuel payload
760 lbs
Range with 45-minute
reserve
1,025 nm
Climb rate
1,200 fpm

FLIGHT DESIGN C4

SPECS

Full-fuel payload
900 lbs
Endurance
More than six
hours
Range
1,200 nm

TECNAM P2010

SPECS

Rate of climb
1,000 fpm
Range
715 nm
Takeoff over 50-foot
obstacle
1,026 ft

NEWS |

B Y A LT O N K . M A R S H
NEW FOUR-SEATER AIRCRAFT are on their way from companies in
Europe that are better known for their two-seat Light Sport aircraft. They include the Pipistrel Panthera, Flight Design C4, and
Tecnam P2010.
The Pipistrel Panthera will cost between $500,000 and
$600,000, depending on whether you build one yourself in the
Experimental category or let the factory do it. Experimental models will begin deliveries in 2014, while fully certified ones will be
available in 2017. The company promises 200 knots true airspeed
using a 210-horsepower Lycoming IO-390. They even promise
full-electric and hybrid engine models, but have decided against
using a diesel engine.
The Flight Design C4 promises a maximum cruise speed
of 160 knots true airspeed using a 180-horsepower Continental
IO-360-AF (alternative fuels) engine or an unnamed-as-yet diesel engine. Fuel consumption is promised to be no more than 10
gallons per hour. The price will be $250,000 with certification in
Europe at the end of 2014. Certification in the United States will
follow shortly after that, in 2015. Flight testing of a proof-of-concept model is to take place in Spain followed by construction of
prototypes that conform to production specifications.
The $275,000 Tecnam P2010 (named for the year it was
designed) isn't waiting for a change in United States certification
rules, and could be certified in Europe as soon as April, with FAA
certification to follow under a reciprocal agreement. It will use a
180-horsepower Lycoming IO-360 engine and have a cruise speed
of 133 knots true airspeed. Its full-fuel payload is 630 pounds, with
a maximum takeoff weight of 2,557 pounds. It is planned to be a
VFR aircraft.
EMAIL alton.marsh@aopa.org

SHELL OFFERS HOPE FOR A NEW UNLEADED FUEL

VIDEO EXTRA

View an AOPA Live
video.

DETAILS ARE STILL ELUSIVE, but Shell
Aviation has tested for 10 years a leadless
fuel that can substitute for aviation fuel
using "a couple of additives," says Shell
researcher Michael Sargeant. Regulators
in the United States are shooting for an
answer by 2018, so it is encouraging to
hear positive news from a company with
the deep pockets (needed for certification
of the fuel) such as Shell (see "Waypoints:
Toward an Unleaded Fuel," page 16).

34 | AOPA PILOT February 2014

The lead-free formulation has a motor
octane number (MON) higher than 100, a
critical factor in formulating a fleetwide
fuel that could power high-compression
engines. (Octane prevents premature ignition known as detonation, and is measured
by more than one scale.) Shell's new leadfree formula has passed preliminary tests
in Lycoming engines on the ground, and a
Piper Saratoga recently flew for about an
hour on the fuel, according to Shell.

Shell must keep its formula secret for
now if it wants to be competitive, so exact
details such as weight and cost have not
been announced. Weight will be similar
to 100LL and cost "comparable," Sargeant
said. There are years of approvals ahead.
Renewable fuel fans will be disappointed
that it is not a biofuel, but those with angst
about a potential shortage of 100LL in the
future have a new source of hope.
-AKM

AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2014

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2014