Scotland’s Largest Flight School Orders Tecnam P-Mentors

Officials from ACS Aviation in Glasgow add that—in addition to taking delivery of the aircraft—the company will become the first Tecnam Aircraft service center in Scotland. This will enable the business to offer specialist aircraft maintenance and technical support to their customers.

ACS Aviation noted that the aircraft acquisition and creation of the service center come on the heels of high growth for the company that is enjoying a record number of graduates moving on to positions as first officers with leading U.K. airlines.

ACS Aviation was established in 2007 and is Scotland’s leading commercial flight training academy and aircraft maintenance facility. The company offers a range of aviation services, including UK Civil Aviation Authority- and European Union Aviation Safety Agency-approved airline pilot training courses for customers and airlines in the U.K. and throughout Europe. It also provides specialist aircraft maintenance services and technical support for general aviation aircraft.

The single-engine, two-place P-Mentor is the latest design from Tecnam. The low-wing aircraft provides flight schools with what is described as “a simple and sustainable single platform solution” for student pilots from initial VFR training up through their instrument rating.

According to Tecnam, the P-Mentor, with its Rotax 912iSc engine, offers the lowest fuel consumption and CO2 emissions currently available for IFR training, and is one of the most economical trainers in the industry. A recent study shows that flight schools operating with a Tecnam single-engine fleet can reduce emissions by up to 60 percent. This equates to 10 tons of CO2 for each student by the time they receive their commercial pilot certificate.

“Tecnam’s P-Mentor aircraft will allow us to significantly reduce our carbon footprint in commercial flight training and upset prevention recovery training with the added benefit of state-of-the-art instrumentation that will help us propel, even further, into our sustainable double-digit growth," said Craig McDonald, technical director at ACS Aviation. "This order is the start of a long-term fleet replacement and sustainability plan which will see us continue to grow the business and provide our student pilots with the latest technology over the coming years."

“Tecnam has always provided an excellent combination of technical specifications and value for money," said Walter Da Costa, Tecnam's chief sales officer. "With the P-Mentor, Tecnam has taken a huge leap forward with the addition of an affordable and smart IFR trainer. This will change the entire pilot training industry for IFR training.”