The Adam Aircraft A500 inline piston twin is closing in on full functionality, company CEO Rick Adam said this week at the Sun 'n Fun Fly-In in Lakeland, Fla. The final certification paperwork allowing the A500 to operate at altitudes up to FL250 has been submitted to the FAA and is pending approval. In September, the airplane's type certificate was amended to include night and IFR operations, pressurization, autopilot and operations up to 18,000 feet. In the meantime, Adam Aircraft is adding several avionics upgrades to the A500, including a traffic advisory system, terrain awareness and warning system and XM weather, as well as CMAX Jeppesen chart viewing on the Avidyne multifunction display.
In addition, the company is also working on the airplane's anti-ice/deice system, air conditioning and lightning strike protection. Adam Aircraft is getting ready to deliver A500 S/N 11 soon and is preparing to ramping up to a production rate of three of the piston twins per month in 2008.
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