CAV AC12
The CAV AC12 is a mid-size, narrow-body twin-engine jet airliner that was designed and built by Construcciones Aeronáuticas Venezolanas. It is the manufacturer's largest single-aisle passenger aircraft. The twinjet has a two-crew member glass cockpit, Fly by wire controls, turbofan engines of sufficient power to allow takeoffs from relatively short runways and higher altitudes, a conventional tail and, for reduced aerodynamic drag, a supercritical wing design. Intended to replace the smaller three-engine AC9 on short and medium routes, the AC12 can carry 200 to 295 passengers for a maximum of 6.000 to 7.800 km, depending on variant. The AC12 as a necessary technological leap for the Venezuelan commercial aviation.
The AC12 was produced in two fuselage lengths. The original AC12-100 entered service in 1989; the AC12-100F freighter variant, and the AC12-100C, a passenger-freighter combi model, debuted in the early 1990s. The stretched AC12-200, began service in 1997. Passenger AC12s have been modified to special freighter (CF) specification for cargo use, while military derivatives include the transport, VIP carriers, and other multi-purpose aircraft. Private and government operators have also customized the AC12 for research and transport roles. All AC12s are powered by Aerotécnica TR-11A-45, Rolls-Royce RB211 or Pratt & Whitney PW2000 series turbofans.