Textron Aviation announced Friday that it had made a milestone delivery. The Cessna Grand Caravan EX delivered marked the 3000th Cessna Caravan family turboprop delivered across the globe.
The plane was delivered to the Brazilian aviation company Azul Conecta, a subsidiary of Azul Airlines. The company transports travelers from small cities and remote locations in Brazil.
The Cessna Caravan and Cessna Grand Caravan EX are made by Textron Aviation Inc, a Textron Inc company. Employees from Textron and representatives from Azul Conecta celebrated with a special delivery ceremony at Textron Aviation’s location in Independence, Kansas.
Cessna Grand Caravan EX
“The Cessna Caravan’s versatility and reliability have made it the most popular aircraft in the utility turboprop category, with now 3,000 delivered globally,” said Lannie O’Bannion, senior vice president of Sales and Flight Operations at Textron Aviation. “I’m thankful to customers like Azul Conecta who continuously rely on the Caravan family of aircraft to fulfill their missions, deliver solutions and improve lives around the world.”
The Caravan is a rugged utility aircraft with low operating costs and was designed to be flown in remote areas. The Caravan can navigate these areas with extreme weather changes, mountainous terrain and rough landing conditions. The versatility of this family of aircraft has garnered appreciation all across the world. These aircraft are used by a variety of customers like government agencies, militaries, law enforcement, freight haulers, air ambulance operators, corporations and humanitarian organizations.
Cessna Caravan
“This Grand Caravan EX will proudly fly the Brazilian skies and connect our 158 destinations, many of which are made possible by the aircraft’s utility and flexibility,” said Flavio Costa, chief technical officer of Azul and president of Azul Conecta. . “As a longtime Textron Aviation customer with a fleet of over 25 Cessna aircraft, we are happy to be a part of this important milestone.”
The Cessna Caravan family includes the Caravan 208, the Grand Caravan EX 208B, the Caravan Amphibian and the Grand Caravan EX Amphibian.
This milestone comes after the November success when Ampaire successfully flew an Eco Caravan, which is an upgraded version of the standard Cessna Grand Caravan.
RELATED STORIES:
WATCH: Ampaire successfully flies Eco Caravan, taking a step toward sustainable aviation
Aerus launches fleet with Cessna SkyCourier and Grand Caravan EX from Textron
Other Milestones for Cessna
The Caravan program was launched by Cessna in 1981 and the first flight of the Caravan 208 prototype was in 1982. It received FAA certification two years later and deliveries began in 1985. That same year, it was approved for amphibious floats.
In 1986, the Caravan 208B Super Cargomaster, which was stretched by four feet in a freight-specific configuration, received its FAA-type certification. The first production of this aircraft was delivered in 1990 and had hit its 1,000th delivery by 2002.
By 1998, Cessna saw the delivery of the 1,000th production Caravan 208. That year deliveries began for the standard Caravan 208, which featured the Pratt and Whitney PT6A-114A engine, rated at 675 shaft horsepower.
In 2005, the production Cessna 208 had its 1,500th delivery. In 2008 the Garmin G1000 became standard equipment and the TKS ice protection was offered.
In 2013, Cessna began deliveries of the Grand Caravan EX 208B that featured a Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-140 engine, rated at 867 shaft horsepower.
By 2017, the G1000 NXi had become standard on both the Caravan and Grand Caravan EX. The 3,000th caravan delivery, of the Grand Caravan EX, is the latest milestone for Textron and the Caravan family.
Contact
Name: Haley Davoren
, Digital Content Manager
Company: GlobalAir.com
Website: https://globalair.com
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 502-456-3934
©2023 GlobalAir.com, Haley Davoren. All rights reserved.
Recent Comments