Pipistrel Panthera
Once in a while an airplane manufacturer comes up with a new, innovative and especially sexy aircraft.
Slovenian manufacturer Pipistrel is no exception. This aircraft has been first introduced 2011 and is now nearly certifed.
The first time seeing this airplane at an airport and not an exhibition hall was when we were just rotating off of runway 23 of Leutkirch as passengers in a DA62, heading to Biberach.
I decided to swap planes and fly back to Leutkirch that day to see if I could catch the owner.
The owner wasn't there anymore but the hangar was still open, so I took a quick look at the aircraft.
Taken from the passenger seat of a DA62 whilst rotating off the runway in EDNL.
After being able to take a short look at this plane and reconfirming my admiration for it, I asked someone in that hangar if they knew the owner of the Panthera and soon enough I was able to get in touch with him.
The owner visits Leutkirch regularly and is based in Italy, which would make finding a suitable time for the shoot a little challenging.
After 2 Months of rescheduling we finally managed to arrange an apointment. We agreed on the owner bringing a CFI friend of his that has formation experience. We had a quick chat, briefed and then got going!
