New Zealand Airline Academy places ten aircraft order with Tecnam

Tecnam and New Zealand Airline Academy Limited announced a firm order for 10 Tecnam aircraft, consisting of eight single engine P2008 JC Night VFR, one single engine P-Mentor IFR trainer with RNAV capability and ballistic safety parachute, plus one multi-engine P2006T Premium edition aircraft. The first of these, the Tecnam P2006T aircraft, is flying direct from the factory in Capua, Italy to the NZAAL base in Oamaru, New Zealand. The remaining nine training aircraft are scheduled for delivery starting in the 2nd quarter of 2024.

Jonathan Manuel, CEO & Director of NZAAL, commented: “When we set out to establish the New Zealand Airline Academy, we meticulously sought an aircraft that would epitomize excellence in several crucial aspects. Our selection criteria included unparalleled safety features, the ability to endure the rigorous demands of flight training, seamless transition from training aircraft to modern day jets through state-of-the art technology, a commitment to environmental sustainability, local dealer support and cost-effectiveness. Tecnam emerged as the unequivocal winner, embodying each of these criteria effortlessly, making it the clear and optimal choice for our flight school.”

Walter Da Costa, Chief Sales Officer of Tecnam, said: “It is great to see the growth of NZAAL. They have developed an almost perfect business model for a flight school that is a paradigm for the region and the world. This model is based on the Tecnam fleet. And we are very proud of this, because our vision for 75 years has been exactly this: the production of simple but modern, safe and economically attractive aircraft for every flight school.” 

New Zealand Airline Academy Limited holds certifications under Part 141 of the Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand and Part 141 of the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam. As an exclusive cadet pilot training provider for Air India’s group AIX Connect (formerly Air Asia India), NZAAL is strategically located in the picturesque locale of Oamaru, North Otago. Three towered airfields with instrument approaches are in close proximity to the base airfield with many more coastal and mountain airfields offering challenging and varied weather conditions that create real-world flying conditions for cadets.

Established in 2018, by two seasoned aviation professionals, NZAAL started flight training with one Tecnam P2008. Five years later, this ten aircraft expansion will take their Tecnam fleet to a total of 24 aircraft and overall fleet total to 26 aircraft including two P2006T Twin advanced Multi IFR trainers a tribute to the two Directors of NZAAL who embarked on their commercial pilot training journey in New Zealand over sixteen years ago.