Story ID: 
Kestrel Launches Mod Center
By: Mark Huber
Caption: Kestrel Aircraft announced yesterday at EAA AirVenture that it has formed an Air Works division to install the Avidyne R9 avionics system and other upgrade
Word Count: 169
Kestrel Aircraft announced yesterday at EAA AirVenture that it has formed an Air Works division to install the Avidyne R9 avionics system and other upgrades in Piper Meridians and Cirrus SR22s. Kestrel president Alan Klapmeier said that the company is targeting a price in the region of $130,000 for installation of a new Meridian cockpit with the system and initially has set a “conservative” goal of 15 installations per year. Avidyne hopes to have the system certified late this year and Klapmeier said installations will begin early next year at the company’s Brunswick, Maine facility via a supplemental type certificate. Modifications offered for the Cirrus will also include installation of a four-blade propeller and a new cowling to accommodate it. “What we know about pilot/vehicle interface is sufficiently different from the way other people do it,” Klapmeier said. He added that he hopes Meridian owners who eventually would fly with a Kestrel cockpit will consider a new Kestrel turboprop down the road.