One of the major product announcements at Aero 2012 in Friedrichshafen is a fast, efficient four-place design from Slovenia. Pipistrel unveiled its Panthera and aims to take a slice of the high-speed cruiser market from Cirrus with an aircraft it says will cruise at 200 knots on 10 gallons an hour of unleaded gas for 1,000 nm with all the seats filled. The fully equipped aircraft will sell for less than $500,000, well below the list price for a decked-out SR22. "Panthera will shake the World of General Aviation, setting the benchmark for efficiency, cabin comfort and safety for others to follow," said Pipistrel CEO Ivo Boscarol. This is Pipistrel's first foray into the Part 91 world with a fully certified aircraft and there were some unique challenges in that process.
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://www.avweb.com/news/pipistrel-unveils-panthera