Press Release

Issued by Piper Aircraft.

January 20, 2014

Piper Aircraft's Turkish dealer Baymap Aviation has obtained regulatory approval for nighttime visual and instrument flight rules operation of Piper's single-engine M-Class aircraft. Turkey and many Middle East nations do not normally permit single-engine night operations.

“Turkish approval for Piper M-Class single-engine VFR/IFR night flights is a significant milestone, thanks to the hard work of Baymap Aviation, the Turkish Ministry of Transport and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation of Turkey,” said Piper vice president of sales and marketing Drew McEwen. The Piper M-Class series consists of the turboprop Piper Meridian, the pressurized piston-powered Piper Mirage and the unpressurized piston-powered Piper Matrix.

“During a two-year program Baymap Aviation flew a Piper Matrix under the auspices of the Turkish civil aviation authorities to prove the capabilities of the Piper M-Class to operate safely in night VFR and IFR conditions,” said Baymap ceo and flight operations manager Oben Ogultarhan. “Our team is now eager to demonstrate this capability to aviators all across the country.”

M-Class aircraft offer Piper performance and safety in a proven airframe that has been an industry standard for years. Three refined derivatives comprise the full line: the Meridian, the Mirage and the Matrix. Each product fits its own niche and price point, and each aircraft provides a seamless step-up to the next level. Created to maximize the private travel experience, the M-Class line balances performance, efficiency and simplicity.

The Piper Meridian is a single-engine turboprop that seats six with club seating. It is powered by the Pratt & Whitney PT6A-42A 500shp engine, sports a 260 KTAS / 482 km/h max cruise speed and has a range of 1,000 nm / 1,852 km. Equipped with the Garmin G1000 avionics suite, the Meridian starts at $2,219,850.