Leadership in Flight Training (LIFT) Academy, located at the Indianapolis International Airport (KIND), took delivery of a new Diamond DA20 this week. This brings LIFT’s total fleet to 47, including two DA20 aircraft.
LIFT has an option to order an additional 50 aircraft from Diamond.
“We were strategic in choosing Diamond for their aircraft’s demonstrated safety and technological similarity to an airline jet, the company’s approach to cutting-edge technology, and our shared vision in creating an aviation career pathway that people find accessible and rewarding,” Ed Bagden, LIFT’s director of operations and academic programs said in a statement. “From day one, Diamond has believed in our mission of becoming the top flight training academy in the U.S. both in our career development pathways and quality of training.”
LIFT Academy has been exclusively partnered with Diamond Aircraft since its launch in 2018. LIFT’s first Diamond aircraft were the DA40 NG single-engine and Diamond DA42-VI twin-engine models. Only three years after launch, LIFT grew into one of the largest flight training institutions in the U.S. Students have logged more than 110,000 training hours in the fleet.
“LIFT has been an excellent partner for us and it has been a thrill to see LIFT students excel in this innovative program, which takes students from zero time to fully qualified airline pilots while training on our aircraft,” Annemarie Mercedes Heikenwälder, sales and marketing director of Diamond Aircraft Canada said in a statement. “Adding the DA20 to their portfolio is a testament to the strong partnership we have and the quality of aircraft we deliver.”
Similar to all the aircraft currently in LIFT’s fleet, the brand new DA20 will be equipped with Garmin G500 avionics. It’s also fuel efficient, burning 3.2 gallons of fuel per hour.
