Piper Aircraft, a key player in the general aviation industry, stands alongside Cessna and Beechcraft as part of the “Big Three” manufacturers. While Cessna and Beechcraft have expanded into private aviation, Piper has remained focused on producing turboprop and piston-powered aircraft for civil use. However, in the early 2000s, Piper considered entering the business aviation market with a unique project: the Piper PA-47 PiperJet.
The PiperJet was envisioned as a single-engine jet aircraft aimed at filling a gap in very light business jets. Announced in October 2006, it was initially priced at just over $2 million. By early 2007, approximately 180 pre-orders had been received. The jet’s entry into the market was planned for early 2010 but faced delays until mid-2013.
In 2009, Imprimis acquired Piper Aircraft, leading to significant changes in the project. The redesigned model featured a larger fuselage and conventional control yoke while maintaining its competitive price point of around $2.6 million. This version was named the PiperJet Altaire.
Despite these efforts, by October 2011, executives announced that the program was under review due to financial challenges and regulatory issues with single-engine jets flying at high altitudes. CEO Simon Caldecott stated, “This is being undertaken to ensure the company is properly aligning business goals and light-jet market forecasts with investment strategies and economic forecasts.” Ultimately, financial constraints led to the suspension of the project later that month.
The sole prototype of the PA-47 was moved to Florida Air Museum after no buyers emerged for the project. Despite this setback, Piper continued developing other successful aircraft models.
The original design of the PiperJet used a Williams FJ44 turbofan engine providing about 2,800 pounds of thrust with specifications including a length of 35 feet eight inches and wingspan of 44 feet three inches. It could cruise at speeds up to 360 knots with a range of 1,300 nautical miles.
The redesign as Altaire introduced more space inside while retaining similar performance capabilities through passive vectored thrust technology.
