If AvCraft's chief executive Ben Bartel turns up at an air show without a Dornier 328Jet to display you won't find him too disappointed.
"I am not in the business of having aircraft waiting around for the next show. If I can sell it, I will," says the ebullient entrepreneur. "Embraer may already know which aircraft they have ready for Singapore 2008 - we don't work that way."
So, no surprise then that on the eve of Farnborough, Bartel was hoping one of his most recent customers would help him meet his marketers' plans and have two aircraft available, one in airliner layout and the other in executive configuration.
It has been a remarkable 18 months for Bartel and his team. Avcraft was one of the victims of the Fairchild Dornier crash but in December 2002 after what Bartel describes as a "life changing" meeting with Dornier managing director Wolfgang Walter, Bartel put together a plan to acquire the former Fairchild-Dornier 328 jet, 328 turboprop, 428 and Global Support assets.
Importantly, these assets included both the type and production certificates as well as the production tooling for the 30-seater aircraft.
Then began a round of talks between Bartel and the other aggrieved parties who had lost money when Fairchild Dornier collapsed.
"I had to make it clear that I was not paying for the sins of the past," Bartel says. "I wanted the suppliers back on board. They will get money out of the programme by going forward. If I could change things from the past I would get into the business of religion."
Blessing
Pratt & Whitney Canada was one of the first vendors to give the new owners its blessing. "They have been fantastic," says Bartel. "Without the engines we don't have a programme. They have been very proactive and that helped us with other vendors."
Six months ago AvCraft announced it was to resume production at Oberphaffenhofen, Germany, clearing first the completed and near-completed aircraft and now preparing to go ahead with full production.
More than 300 staff laid off after the Fairchild collapse are back at work and the completed aircraft are being delivered with zero defects.
"Response to our efforts to increase reliability, reduce costs and restart manufacturing has been well received," Bartel says. "At the outset the industry, customers and potential customers were interested to see if we could really make a go of this. The response from operators has been very positive from initially one of caution."
The largest operator of the 328Jet, Hainan Airlines of China, already has 27 of the aircraft but has committed to a further 20. The first five of this order will be delivered by the year end.
UK-based executive jet operator Bookajet has ordered seven Dornier 328 Envoy jets (the corporate configured version of the aircraft) with six further options to serve its corporate charter business and for the flights it operates on behalf of the Swiss-based Club Airways.
Bartel says he is a realist and is frequently pulling back his sales and marketing team who have been astonished at the early successes they have achieved. "We are a niche aircraft operation and must remember that. But we are well ahead of where we expected to be at this stage.
"We have moved from survival mode to production mode but it is still an issue with some people. There is still nervousness and people ask 'how do we know if the aircraft will be there.'
"But I am in this for the long term. If I were going to walk away, I would have sold the 18 aircraft and made a profit. Instead the profit has been ploughed back into the company to fund the move to full production."
The confidence is rising with some 275 prospects from 51 different customers - 13 airlines, 30 corporates and eight for special missions.
"Sixty per cent of the aircraft are with airlines, 25% for Envoys and 15% for special mission," says Bartel. "The airlines want to know about operating costs and the cost and availability of spares; and they want to know about training."
A deal with CAE has resolved any training issues and a focus on the customer support function is improving the spares issue. BAE Systems is providing parts warehousing and distribution for North America from Virginia, with technical and customer support being provided directly from Germany.
Issue
"One big issue for us is that we can have a spare part out of the factory in Germany and into the USA in eight hours - it then spends four days in customs. It is a ridiculous position and one that we are now resolving," Bartel says.
With an expected boom around the corner from operators of turboprops responding to passenger pressure and new cost advantages from the Dornier 328, plus the prospect of a further 100 to 150 sales from 328Jet freighters, it is no wonder that Bartel is confident that he did the right thing - and is not surprising that the cynics are even beginning to sit up and take notice.
But Bartel will not be rushed. "We are working through our problems: before the owners spent through problems."
He shrugs off talk of the Dorner 428, the stretched version of the jet, as premature, saying: "There's no such thing as a simple stretch. We want to get the 328 right first but in the long term it makes sense."
The suggestion that he may step in to rescue the Fairchild Dornier 728 is met by mirth from Bartel. "I will not be part of that. I'd have to be very inebriated even to think about being part of it," he said.
Europe is a disproportionately large part of the AvCraft business and being at Farnborough gives Bartel and Walter the chance to meet the customers in a single location. "Europe is ideal for the Dornier328 and people are really beginning to see the advantages of this aircraft."
With certification for London City Airport expected in September, the chances of Bartel having one of his own aircraft available for the next show get remoter by the day.
We are working through our problems: before, the owners spent through problems.
Source: Flight Daily News
