Total Eclipse Still on Track

The AOPA just posted an article about the progress that Eclipse Aerospace is making as it continues to rise from the ashes of bankruptcy. They also promise an article about the company in an upcoming issue of their magazine, AOPA Pilot. The more I hear about the new Eclipse Aerospace, the more I like it.

I wrote in January that they were starting to upgrade some aircraft and were getting approval to sell parts. They're now producing new parts, upgrading the glass panels with custom IS&S hardware under the "Avio NG" moniker, adding dual Garmin GPS 400 units and autopilot upgrades, equipping their aircraft for flight into known icing (FIKI) and more. They call this the "Total Eclipse" factory upgrade program.

AOPA quoted Eclipse Aerospace co-founder Mike Press as saying that the jets were originally only delivered 80% complete. He and co-founder Mason Holland feel that the Total Eclipse program gets their jets to the 100% they should have been at in the first place. They're offering the full upgrade for about $500K which won't sound cheap to most of us, but will do a lot to make these planes more useful.

The new Eclipse has purchased several of the old EA 500s and is offering them with the Total Eclipse upgrade for $2.15M. They're offering a credit to anyone who wants to trade in an original EA 500 and purchase a Total Eclipse. They're also offering a $150,000 credit to anyone who lost a deposit on one of these jets before the bankruptcy and wants to purchase a Total Eclipse now.

While they seem focused on upgrading the existing fleet, they're working on the legalities and funding that will allow them to start producing new aircraft soon. I think that's the most exciting part of their story. It's one thing to gather up the old aircraft and do some upgrades, but it's something else entirely to start producing new aircraft.

I don't think that's the limit of their vision either...their website still has a section for the single engine EA 400 that surprised and excited a lot of people by appearing at AirVenture 2007 seemingly out of nowhere. If Eclipse Aerospace is still hosting pictures and info about this plane, they might just have some plans for it in the future....

Congrats to Eclipse Aerospace on your progress. I'm looking forward to seeing more of your jets around.

EA 500 picture via GuidoMedia.com