Mahindra Sticks With Hartzell for New Airvan 10

Mumbai-based airframer Mahindra Aerospace has chosen to equip its recently certified Airvan 10 turboprop single with a Hartzell propeller. The decision continues a more-than-three-decade relationship between the airframer and the Ohio-based prop maker on the GippsAero aircraft series. The lightweight, three-blade, 84-inch-diameter aluminum hub propeller is constant speed, with feathering and reversing and is optimized to improve climb rate.

A 10-seat, FAR Part 23 certified utility aircraft, the Airvan 10 retains the aerodynamic design of its predecessor, the piston-powered Airvan 8, and shares many of its production parts. There are more than 240 Airvan 8s in operation throughout the world, all mounting props from Hartzell.

J.J. Frigge, Hartzell’s executive vice president, said, "We are very pleased to continue the relationship on the Airvan series, which began in the 1980s, and continues today following Mahindra's acquisition of the program in 2009."