GRAHAM WARWICK / WASHINGTON DC
Company owner Bartel pledges to maintain production in Germany, but needs agreements with suppliers to re-open line
US firm AvCraft Aviation has completed the acquisition of bankrupt Fairchild Dornier's 328 programme. Terms have not been disclosed, but reports suggest privately held aviation services firm AvCraft, which is being renamed Fairchild Dornier, has paid around €100 million ($105 million) to take over production of the 328JET, support of both jet- and turboprop-powered versions of the 32-seater and design rights to the shelved 44-seat 428JET.
AvCraft owner Ben Bartel has provided most of the money to acquire the 328 programme, including the production plant in Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany, and becomes chief executive of the new Fairchild Dornier. Bartel, who took a successful German cable company public in 1999, has told employees he "will never move" production to the USA. AvCraft's Akron, Ohio, facility will become the primary US service centre for the 328 while corporate completions will be performed at its Tyler, Texas site.
The deal includes 18 ready-to-deliver 328JETs, plus five aircraft in various stages of final assembly, and around 200 Oberpfaffenhofen employees. The first aircraft, an Envoy corporate variant, will be delivered in April to Germany's Aero-Dienst, appointed a 328 service centre and regional distributor for the Envoy. Two more Envoys are to be delivered to Nuremberg-based Aero-Dienst in August and September.
The new Fairchild Dornier plans to recall up to 300 employees at Oberpfaffenhofen over the next year as it restarts 328JET production. The company expects to produce 15 aircraft a year initially, ramping up to around 40 a year. The company hopes to resurrect letters of intent signed before Fairchild Dornier went bankrupt, and is targeting corporate and regional customers.
The company's priority is to re-establish support for the 328, to rebuild credibility. Talks are under way with operators of the 99 turboprop and 86 jet aircraft in service, to establish where there are parts shortages and bolster inventory. The deal includes a parts inventory valued at $65 million. The company plans to expand its Akron centre quickly, increasing the workforce from 80 to about 200 this year, and is in discussions with state authorities on tax incentives.
The new Fairchild Dornier has to reach agreements with former suppliers on the 328JET to restart production. These include Italy's Aermacchi for the cockpit and fuselage assembly, Portugal's OGMA for fuselage structure and the UK's GKN Aerospace for nacelles and doors. The wing production line was relocated by Fairchild Dornier to San Antonio, Texas, and is now owned by an arm of DaimlerChrysler.
The former Fairchild Dornier's 728 70-seat regional airliner project was suspended last year shortly after the prototype was rolled out. The administrator then failed to secure a buyer for the company as a going concern, or for the 728 programme.
Source: Flight International
