ATP tops-up Cessna Skyhawk order with 40 more aircraft

Textron Aviation has signed an agreement with ATP Flight School for the purchase of an additional 40 Cessna Skyhawk aircraft with deliveries to commence in 2026. This addition to ATP’s existing fleet of nearly 225 Skyhawks, deployed across more than 85 training centres nationwide, will provide students with access to a modern and advanced fleet in support of their pilot career aspirations. 

This agreement marks the fourth fleet purchase, amounting to a total of 135 Cessna Skyhawks, for ATP’s Airline Career Pilot Program in just over a year, as the flight school scales to train 20,000 airline pilots by 2030.  

“With already one of the youngest, most modern fleets at scale, the firm orders for 135 Skyhawks are for direct fleet growth, not replacement. Over the next three years, ATP will be expanding its Cessna fleet by 60% and delivering over 40 new state-of-art planes to ATP students each year through 2026,” said Michael Arnold, Vice President Marketing, ATP Flight School. “ATP’s fleet expansion has been responsibly paired with an investment in its Florida-based flight operations centre. Dedicated safety, tech ops and quality assurance departments promote a high level of safety across the ATP network with real-time monitoring, risk mitigation and safety trend analysis as they orchestrate 800 daily flights. This structured airline-based approach to flight operations provides students with a safety-focused environment from the onset of their professional careers as they become airline pilots on the most efficient path possible.”