The 2017 GippsAero GA8 Airvan Is a Utilitarian ‘AircraftForSale’ Top Pick

Today’s Top Pick is a 2017 GippsAero GA8 Airvan.

GippsAero got its start during the 1970s as Gippsland Aeronautics, an Australian company specializing in maintaining and modifying aircraft. During the late 1980s, the company developed an agricultural crop-spraying aircraft called the GA200 followed by the GA8 utility aircraft, which first flew in 1995. Indian industrial conglomerate Mahindra Group acquired a controlling stake in GippsAero in 2009 but halted production in 2020. Last week, company co-founder George Morgan announced that he had bought out Mahindra’s interest and plans to restart production in Australia.

Airvans are rare sights in the U.S., but I spotted one last summer on the ramp at Hancock County/Bar Harbor Airport (KBHB) in Maine. Its wide fuselage and high, strut-braced wing helped it blend in with the Cessna Caravans and 206s operating there. That seems appropriate as the GA8 was designed to fill a perceived gap in the market between the six-seat piston 206 and 10-seat turboprop Caravan.

This 2017 GA8 has 1,000 hours on the airframe, its Lycoming TIO-540 engine and its Hartzell propeller. The panel includes Garmin G500 flight display, GTN 750, GTN 650, and an engine analyzer. The aircraft’s interior is set up in an eight-seat configuration for passengers.    

Commercial operators can find many uses for the GippsAero GA8 easily, but so can everyday pilots. If you want an airplane that can haul your immediate family plus a few cousins or close friends, or a family of four with lots of baggage, you should consider this 2017 GippsAero GA8 Airvan, which is available for $800,000 on AircraftForSale.

You can arrange financing of the aircraft through FLYING Finance. For more information, email info@flyingfinance.com.