Aircraft
Paris 2011: Piaggio Celebrates Groundbreaking of New Avanti II Plant
Piaggio Aero (Static Display T1

Piaggio Aero (Static Display T19) last week broke ground for a new factory, which will produce subassemblies and parts for the A180 Avanti II twin turboprop. The new facility, which will be located at Villanova d’Albenga, Italy, is scheduled to be operational by 2013. The company said it will “increase production-line efficiency and speed up lean manufacturing cycles” compared with the current Finale Ligure plant.

The move will mark the end of the company’s 100-year association with the Finale Ligure plant, where it built some 55 examples of aircraft. Final assembly of the Avanti II, which has a 402-knot (Mach 0.7) maximum cruise speed, will remain at the company’s Genova Sestri Ponente facility.