Piper’s M500 received approval from the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), clearing the way for the 500-shp Meridian to enter into service on the European register.

"EASA certification is an important milestone allowing us to kick off a major sales campaign to bring the M500 to the European market," said Simon Caldecott, president and CEO of Piper Aircraft. "This is the third international certification for the M500 including Brazil, Canada and Japan, and is significant because there is a growing demand for an aircraft that offers the advanced safety features and the best value proposition of any aircraft in its class.”

The six-place, $1.99 million M500 features Garmin G1000 avionics with Electronic Stability Protection, Underspeed Protection, Coupled Go-Round, Synthetic Vision Technology, and Automatic Level Mode, as well as the GFC 700 autopilot as standard equipment.

Other improvements for the M500 include the Aspen EFD-1000 standby instrument, GTX 33 Extended Squitter Transponder, a centrally located single audio panel, dual USB charging ports, and an optional GTS 825 Traffic Advisory System, which coupled with the GTX 33ES gives the aircraft ADS-B In and Out functionality.

Meanwhile, Piper’s $2.85 million M600 featuring an all-new wing, more range, more payload and Garmin G3000 avionics recently received its FAA production certification and began delivering to U.S. customers.