Epic Aircraft celebrated the announcement of a purchase agreement this week at LABACE 2023 by Brazilian fractional-share operator Avantto for 34 Epic E1000 GX turboprop singles. Epic CEO Doug King flew the E1000 GX on display at LABACE from the company’s Bend, Oregon headquarters, along with a 16-liter bottle of Veuve Clicquot champagne that he shared during the celebration.
Deliveries of Avantto’s E1000s are scheduled to begin in mid-October, with the second by year-end and the rest arriving at the rate of eight per year over the next four years. This will depend on E1000 certification by Brazil’s ANAC, which is pending.
The E1000 will be key to Avantto’s ambitious plans to double its size over the next two to three years by offering fractional aircraft to Brazil’s agribusiness industry and positioning the fractional provider for an initial public offering.
“Brazil is the world’s largest exporter of beef and soybeans, and by next year it will be for cotton, too,” Avantto CEO Rogério Andrade told AIN. Even during Brazil’s economic and exchange-rate fluctuations, those commodities continue to supply the world with goods and ranchers with a steady flow of dollars.
For Avantto to reach this market, he said, “A very fast turboprop was the missing piece. The Epic’s low cost, both of acquisition and of operation, made it hands down the best option.”
Describing the E1000’s capabilities, King said, “It’s got the same engine and prop as a Pilatus [PC-12] and it weighs 3,000 pounds less. Of course, it’s faster. [It is] the only [airplane] that goes over 300 knots on under 50 gallons of fuel an hour. The consumption is half that of any light jet.”
Powered by a 1,200-shp Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-67A and five-blade Hartzell composite propeller, the all-composite E1000 can climb to a maximum operating altitude of 34,000 feet. With full fuel (264 gallons/999 liters), the E1000 can carry a payload of 1,100 pounds and fly 1,560 nm. Maximum cruise speed is 333 ktas and normal cruise 317 ktas. Takeoff and landing distances over a 50-foot obstacle are 2,254 feet (687 meters) and 2,399 feet (731 meters), respectively. Avionics include the Garmin G1000 NXi suite with a GFC 700 autopilot.
The E1000's interior has an air of spaciousness unusual in a small aircraft, and King said that an additional 200 pounds of soundproofing was used to ensure that the aircraft is acoustically comfortable for longer trips.
Its lighter weight is due to its carbon-fiber construction, which unites strength with a smooth, sculpted, and aerodynamic finish, contributing to efficiency. From a few meters away, the joining of curved windows to the structure is such that the windows appear to be merely areas where paint wasn’t applied.
Avantto plans to unite the Epic initiative with its existing helicopter capability to provide seamless travel. “A rancher will be able to take off from his 800-meter strip, fly in an Avantto Epic to São Paulo, land, step into an Avantto helicopter, and get out at his destination.” Without that door-to-door service under the Avantto banner, the alternative is a small aircraft to a regional airport and a business jet, with multiple changes of aircraft and service providers. Avantto’s helicopter fleet flies more than 1,400 operations per month.
“While the Epic [E1000] is new and not currently in Brazil, it is by far the best to fulfill the needs of the customer,” Andrade said. “It’s a clean-sheet design that is 20 years ahead of anything else the market offers.” Avantto also plans to open seven bases in Brazil’s agricultural belt to meet the needs of customers.