PIPISTREL

One hundred years ago in 1919, the first successful flight from England to Australia took place. The Great Air Race (GAR) for 2019 presents a unique and major opportunity to commemorate the centenary of that historic event, significant to the global aviation, communication and travel industries.

Capitalising on a concept initially proposed by a well–known Australian aviator and adventurer Dick Smith AC, the 2019 Centenary Great Air Race will be targeting innovative, new aviation technologies with the lowest environmental impact. This concept will push the boundaries of current aviation technology, as well as the resources and expertise that are required to design and fly such an aircraft on this 18,000 nautical mile adventure. The event is technically feasible, but completing the route in an electric, hybrid or similar low-consumption aircraft will be an unprecedented achievement that is similar to the efforts of the Smith brothers and crew 100 years ago.

The development of these race aircraft will hopefully fast-track the development of electric and hybrid aviation technologies for the past 10 years. Several Pipistrel dealers have entered the GAR, flying a new model specifically developed for this competition. The new Pipistrel ‘Adventurer’ aircraft is a limited edition model purposely designed for global events like the GAR.

This same race aircraft model is now available to the public, so why not join this great adventure with other Pipistrel dealers and owners from around the globe

As of December 2018, there had been 20 entries from the UK, Europe, USA, Canada and Australia.

There are four categories in the GAR 2019 and we are entering the Pipistrel Adventurer aircraft in Class 4 – Fuel Efficient Aircraft:

Battery electric

Hydrogen fuel cell electric

Hybrid electric (Avgas, Mogas, diesel or other fuel as specified)

Fuel-efficient aircraft

The ‘Pipistrel Adventurer’ is basically a standard Virus SWiS with Dynon or Garmin instruments and long-range 49-gallon fuel tanks, appropriate to fly this once-in-a-lifetime adventure. Other features include:

• MT constant speed propeller

• 185-litre fuel tanks – sufficient for this event and almost double the normal long-range fuel tanks size

• Beringer wheels and brakes

• Long-lasting eight-ply tyres on all wheels

• Unique stickers for the event with your race number, pilot’s name and team information, sponsorship stickers if required and your country’s flag on the tail.

• This aircraft would normally sell for €172,807 (approx. $197,587) ex-factory, but as a special promotion the Pipistrel Adventurer model is offered at a €12,800 ($14,635) discount, making the total price only €160,000 ($182,944). The cut-off time for ordering the aircraft at this special pricing is the end of March 2019.

The aircraft will be ready for delivery in October, one month prior to the start of the Great Air Race. New buyers are welcome to join other race competitors in preparing their aircraft at one of the Pipistrel factories in Italy and Slovenia, where a series of smaller ‘shake-down’ trips are planned to validate that each aircraft is ready for this great adventure. In preparation for the race start, all Pipistrel competitors will fly from the Pipistrel factory to the starting airfield in the UK for the pre-race celebrations.

Even though each competitor will be flying individually in the competition, Pipistrel says they believe this is a great opportunity for aircraft owners from around the world to bond during this fantastic trip. Of course, there will be support from other dealers and competitors to make sure you finish the race in Darwin, Australia. After arriving in Darwin at the end of this great adventure, you can head off to explore Australia in your own time.

When you are ready to return home, Pipistrel Australia will assist in transporting your Pipistrel Adventurer race aircraft back to Europe, the US or anywhere else in the world by sea-container, that is if you don’t want to fly home!