By Leithen Francis
Source: Aviation Daily
Honeywell’s business and general aviation (GA) division has its eye firmly fixed on indigenous aircraft makers emerging in the Asia Pacific region.
Caiga also purchased Cirrus, another Honeywell customer.
The U.S. supplier also is working with Harbin Aircraft, which is developing the Y12F, a new variant of its long-running Y12 family of 19-seat aircraft that uses Honeywell’s Primus Apex avionics suite. The new variant has been undergoing flight testing and is due to receive Chinese certification this year.
Honeywell is also targeting Southeast Asian company AeroNimbus, which is developing a very light business jet aircraft, and Indonesian Aerospace (IAe) to discuss the N219, a new twin-engine turboprop aircraft in the very early stages of developing, says Wilson, adding that Honeywell also wants to be involved in GippsAero’s GA18 program.
The GA18 is a new variant of the GAF Nomad, an 18-seater first developed in Australia in the 1960s and 70s. GippsAero is an Australian aircraft maker owned by Indian industrial conglomerate Mahindra that now holds the Nomad type certificate. It also is helping to develop the NM5, a five-seat GA aircraft that India’s CSIR National Aerospace Laboratories designed.Robert Wilson, president of Honeywell Business & General Aviation, says his division has been speaking to Chinese aircraft maker Caiga, China Aviation Industry General Aircraft Co., about its purchase of U.S. airframer Epic in 2010 and how its plans to use the aircraft’s Honeywell TPE331 powerplants for future generations.
