DULUTH — Cirrus
Aircraft is on a hiring spree as the development of its Vision Jet moves
into high gear toward the targeted 2015 delivery date.
About 50
people have been hired in Duluth in the past six months to fine-tune the
new light personal jet, Cirrus spokesman Todd Simmons said.
Most hired are engineers, technicians and designers.
That
brings the number of Cirrus employees in Duluth and Grand Forks, N.D.,
up to about 570, with nearly 500 in Duluth — including virtually all of
the jet program positions, Simmons said.
Many more will be needed as the jet program is accelerated.
“We’re hiring, without question,” Simmons said.
The
Cirrus website suggests more than 60 additional specialists are being
sought. It lists about 30 positions for engineers, drafters,
technicians, planners and designers with the SF-50 Vision Jet Program,
with some of them involving multiple hires.
It’s a big difference
from a year ago, when the Vision Jet program had slowed for lack of
capital after several years of development. But when new owners China
Aviation Industry General Aircraft Co. invested nearly $100 million to
bring the new light jet to market, that put the program back on track.
Promotion
of the Vision Jet then geared up again with public demonstrations of
the prototype. The single-engine personal jet will seat five adults and
two children and feature advanced technology, avionics and luxury
features similar to Cirrus’ piston-powered planes. It will fill the gap
between high-performance propeller planes and light-business jets.
Orders
for the Vision Jet are up to 525, the vast majority getting in before
the price tag rose from $1.72 million to $1.96 million on July 1.
“I
don’t expect to add a whole lot more,” Simmons said of the orders.
“We’ve got enough orders out there. That’s quite a lot of planes to
build.”
He said a comprehensive update on the Vision Jet will be made in a few weeks.
Other
manufacturers have tried and failed to bring a similar owner/pilot
personal jet to market, including Piper Aircraft. Cirrus could face
direct competition from Diamond Industries, which is developing the
Diamond D-Jet, a personal jet that will seat five people.
Its
development also stalled when funding dried up during the economic
downturn that hit the aviation industry hard. But the development of the
Diamond Jet has since resumed.
Aviation industry analyst Richard
Aboulafia has said the company that first fills a niche in the low end
of the light-jet market will have an advantage, especially if it doesn’t
have competition. He doubted the market was big enough for two
companies with small personal jets.
“Cirrus isn’t in a race,”
Simmons said. “It’s important that Cirrus gets their plane right. We
have to build a plane that’s right for our customers. That’s more
important than to worry about competitors. That’s the way we look at
bringing a jet to market.”
Source: http://www.sctimes.com
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