Piaggio Aerospace Celebrates 40th Anniversary of P.180 First Flight
Why It MattersThe anniversary underscores Piaggio's push to scale P.180 output and broaden the Avanti family, signalling deeper investment in the turboprop segment of business aviation.
Piaggio Aerospace marked the 40th anniversary of the P.180 Avanti's first flight, which took place on 23 September 1986, with an event at its Villanova d'Albenga campus in Liguria, Italy. Several aircraft were on display, including the company's P.180 experimental aircraft, the second P.180 ever built, and guests included the Ambassador of Turkey to Italy, Elif Çomoğlu Ülgen, along with Italian government representatives, senior military officials, regional and local authorities, and partners, customers and media.
Looking ahead, Piaggio Aerospace said it plans to progressively increase P.180 production to up to 30 aircraft per year over the next decade. Earlier in the anniversary year, in February 2026, the company announced the next-generation Avanti NX variant, featuring a new flight deck, cabin interior and connectivity, and in April 2026 it named the Avanti NX launch customer, a European operator that ordered two aircraft in an executive business configuration with stretcher modules for air ambulance conversion.
The anniversary year also coincides with a sales milestone for the Avanti Evo, with more than 40 aircraft sold since its first customer delivery in 2015. Piaggio Aerospace said it is also evolving its support offering for Avanti I, II and Evo operators throughout the aircraft's lifecycle. An exhibition of engineering drawings, models and historical materials documenting the P.180's development was presented at the event, and a selection of historical wind tunnel models will be made available on the Piaggio Aerospace website.
Cristian Toninelli, CEO of Piaggio Aerospace, said: "After 40 years, it is not simply an aircraft with a history. It is an aircraft with a story — and that story is still being written." Haluk Bayraktar, chairman of Piaggio Aerospace, said: "Rinaldo Piaggio started in 1884 with a workshop and an idea. And 142 years later, we are still here, and there are still aircraft leaving this field with the name Piaggio on the tail."
