Eclipse Aviation is attempting to shift towards a just-in-time supply chain as the company secures orders from UK and US air taxi operators.
Firm orders for 25 Eclipse 500 very light jets and 25 options from UK start-up JetSet Air and 15 firm and 15 options from Boston-based Linear Air have swollen Eclipse’s orderbook to 2,350.
To meet future demand, chief executive Vern Raburn says the Eclipse’s suppliers need to adopt “Wal-Mart style” just-in-time logistics methods used in the fast-moving consumer goods market.
Without such methods, he says, the Albuquerque, New Mexico-based manufacturer will fail to meet its commitment to build 20 Eclipse 500s a week.
Speaking at the US National Business Aviation Association convention in Orlando, Florida last week, Raburn insisted the company’s four-a-day target was not a “magic bullet”, but could be achieved only if suppliers met their delivery commitments. “Our challenge is not can we build a plane, it’s can we get the supplies in time?” he says.
JetSet Air intends to offer on-demand air taxi and scheduled shuttle services from the UK to popular European destinations and also plans to offer hour-based block charter. It intends to begin operations in the first 24 months of Eclipse 500 production.
There are five Eclipse 500s in flight test and Raburn says he is 70% sure of meeting the 31 March certification target, but adds: “One supplier is causing us a lot of pain to make our deadline.”
Source: Flight International
