The airline said it had ordered "three single-engine DA40 NG training aircraft and one twin-engine DA42-VI training aircraft from Austria's Diamond Aircraft with the option of adding another eleven planes to the order.
In addition, airBalticTraining has ordered a DSIM flight training simulator.
Deliveries of the aircraft are expected to begin in May 2018.
The cost of the purchase by the majority state-owned airline was not disclosed in a press release, but clearly airBaltic has not scrimped on the specifications with Amila Spiegel, Sales and Marketing Director of Diamond Aircraft Industries GmbH saying:
“We are proud to be airBaltic’s choice for professional flight training solutions. With our fleet of DA40 NG and DA42-VI – both equipped with the fuel efficient AE300 Jet-A1 engines and the newest Garmin NXi glass cockpit – as well as with the Flight Training Devices, airBaltic will benefit from a high level of standardization in maintenance, spare parts and procedures."
Online aircraft price comparison sites suggest the cost of a DA40 is around 250,000-300,000 euros while a DA42 is around 450,000 to 500,000 euros, giving a ballpark cost (excluding simulator) of around 1,000,000 to 1,500,000 euros for the four aircraft. However, this does not take into account any discounts for multiple purchases, or additional costs for spare parts, servicing and so on.
LSM asked airBaltic for pricing details. We were told "Investments in this part of the project will reach more than two million euros" including four aircraft and a simulator, but no further details.
