Eclipse Aviation News
Eclipse Aviation, manufacturer of the revolutionary Eclipse 500 very light jet (VLJ), today hosted a groundbreaking ceremony for a new primary assembly building called Sunport 11. The new 52,000 square foot space will house a state-of-the-art assembly and manufacturing center, and serve as a central hub for Eclipse 500 production. In attendance at the 1:00 p.m. groundbreaking were local and state leaders including, New Mexico Senators Pete Domenici and Jeff Bingaman, and New Mexico Congresswoman Heather Wilson.
At today’s event, Vern Raburn, Eclipse’s president and CEO, previewed the company’s plans to continue to grow its organizational footprint over the coming months. Raburn remarked, “We set out to change aviation, and we are accomplishing this goal with the help of this great city and state. As we move into aircraft manufacturing and delivery, we will continue to rapidly expand our physical infrastructure, growing from three buildings to six by June of this year. This growth will allow us to ramp production to four aircraft per day, and deliver on our order log of more than 2,360 jets.”
Eclipse Facilities to Double by Mid-2006
Eclipse currently has three buildings in operation representing nearly 200,000 square feet of space. These include the company’s Sunport 1 headquarters, its Sunport 2 final assembly building and the Sunport 10 friction stir weld center. The company plans to expand its facilities to encompass six buildings totaling more than 350,000 square feet by June 2006. All six buildings will be in close proximity to the Albuquerque International Sunport, with three located on the airport grounds.
Eclipse is slated to begin production within the next two months in preparation for FAA certification and first customer deliveries in late Q2 of this year. In addition to expanding its facilities, Eclipse estimates it will grow its Albuquerque-based workforce from 500 employees to more than 1,000 by year end.
Eclipse Aviation is in the business of designing, certifying and producing modern, affordable jet aircraft that will revolutionize the transportation market. The company is applying advanced electronics systems, manufacturing and business practices to produce aircraft that cost less than a third of today's small jet aircraft, will be significantly safer and easier to operate than those of today, and have the lowest cost of ownership ever achieved in a jet aircraft.
The goal of Eclipse is to bring the word "personal" into aviation, making it possible for commercial air passengers to move directly between cities on a quick, affordable and convenient basis. It will also allow pilot owners to enter the world of jet-powered aviation.