Piper Aircraft and ATP Flight School announced, during the annual Sun-n-Fun Fly-In, the signing of a second 100 aircraft fleet order.

ATP, which holds the distinction of being the largest private flight school in the United States and leading supplier of pilots to the nation’s regional airlines, is now the larges Piper fleet operator in the world.

ATP’s original Archer order was placed in April of 2013, which included the initial purchase of 15 Archer TX, single-engine, piston powered aircraft with the option for 85 additional Archers. Over the past 5 years, ATP has consistently exercised its options and has taken delivery of Piper Archers each year and will reach 100 aircraft delivered by October 2018.

This second 100 Archer TX order will bring ATP’s fleet to over 400 aircraft – continuing to increase the school’s training capacity in an effort to solve the U.S. pilot shortage. With demand for commercial pilots at an industry high, the new order demonstrates ATP’s trust in the Archer as a proven, reliable, and economical trainer, capable of delivering the volume of training required to dependably supply pilots to the nation’s airlines.

“We are delighted with ATP’s continued confidence in Piper Aircraft and our trainer products. Its consistent pace of aircraft orders and deliveries is a testament to the quality training equipment that we manufacture,” said Piper President and CEO Simon Caldecott.

“As the leading provider of commercial pilots, this second 100-plane order will be invaluable in backing our commitment of providing airlines with a reliable pipeline of professionally trained pilots,” said ATP president Justin Dennis. “The Archer has shown itself to be a safe and trustworthy platform for our students, while its operational and technological flexibility makes it up to the task of addressing the airline pilot shortage. We look forward to continuing to conquer this industry challenge with Piper and provide our students with access to the safe, efficient training they have come to expect.”