Tecnam P2012 Makes First Flight

Experimental test pilot Lorenzo De Stefano was at the controls for the flight and reported that after a short test card of maneuvers with the gear extended, he executed a single landing back at Capua. The airplane responded "exactly as I expected," De Stefano said.

The Tecnam P2012 is targeted to cruise at 175 knots at 10,000 feet. It will be configured with what Tecnam says is spacious cargo storage. It will have a 600 nm range, though most of the flights the planes are likely to fly will be shorter than that.

The emerging twin is powered by a pair of Lycoming TEO-540-series engines, which will likely produce well in excess of 300 hp apiece---the exact horsepower rating has not yet been released. The electronic-ignition, turbocharged engines represent an impressive update of Lycoming's opposed six-cylinder workhorse. The design of the P2012 will not, Tecnam's Walter Da Costa told Plane & Pilot, require counter-rotating engines, as the propellers are mounted close to the centerline in order to give the Traveler docile single-engine behavior regardless of which engine is producing power.

Certification for the Tecnam P2012 is slated for 2018, with entry into service the following year. Tecnam is in sales discussions with on-demand charter provider Cape Air, which now operates a large fleet of vintage cabin-class Cessna twins on short-haul charter routes in the U.S. Northeast.

Learn more at Tecnam.