Pipistrel on Monday announced that its Alpha LSA, which the company calls "the perfect training aircraft," is ready to go, at a price of $85,000. The Alpha trainer is equipped with a Rotax 912 80-hp engine and a ballistic chute. The panel features conventional instruments, complemented by a GPS Garmin Aera 500. The Alpha has a "beefed-up" undercarriage to handle rough student landings, and a full-fuel payload of about 500 pounds. Cruise speed is 108 knots and range is 400 miles. In the training role doing touch-and-goes, the aircraft will burn less than 2.5 gallons per hour, according to Pipistrel. The all-new airplane represents "a completely new approach to flight training," Pipistrel said, "at a cost nearly half that of our competitors."
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