Mooney Comeback!

[KSMooniac]

Sounds official now!  

 

NEWS RELEASE

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                    CONTACT:     John Nohe

October 11th, 2013                                                                 Mooney Public Relations

                                                                                                jnohe@jnaadv.com

                                                                                                o: 913.327.0055

                                                                                                m: 816.304.6717

 

Mooney Announces Its Comeback

With New Funding, Mooney Sets Itself to Re-enter the Single Engine Market

 

Kerrville, Texas – After a five-year hiatus from manufacturing single-engine airplanes Mooney is pleased to announce that it will restart manufacturing at the beginning of January 2014 at its headquarters in Kerrville, TX.  New funding from Soaring America Corporation, a California based Company will provide necessary capital to re-launch and sustain the legendary brand. Details of the financial arrangements will remain confidential. The company will continue to manufacture the Acclaim Type S, and the Ovation series.

 

“It’s a new day for Mooney. And with a new investment group that is committed to the future, we’re expecting to make a strong move in the industry,” noted Barry Hodkin, Chief Financial Officer for the company. It’s been a long time coming and we couldn’t be more excited about our return to manufacturing one of the finest and most trusted airplane fleets in the industry.” 

 

The first order of business will be to hire and train a new workforce and reestablish the supply chain. The company is projected to recruit up to 100 people within the first year of operation. The company has a large variety of personnel needs that includes technicians, engineers, line workers, accounting and sales people. Within two years, the company is anticipating employing significantly more people depending on the demand for its products.

 

“While we expect to be reunited with some of our previous employees, we are confident we’ll attract new talent as we re-enter this aviation space. We’re looking for the best and brightest people to help meet our vision for the future,” said Hodkin.

 

 

(more)

 

 

The Acclaim Type S is recognized as the world’s fastest single engine airplane. The turbo-normalized airplane is home to over 130 speed records with a normal cruise speed of 230 ktas and a service ceiling of 25,000 feet. The Ovation series has cruising speeds up to 190 ktas and a service ceiling of up to 20,000 feet.  

 

“It’s too early to provide the details, but we’ll have some very exciting announcements in the near future about the technological advances that will accompany the Acclaim Type S and Ovation series,” said Hodkin.

 

During the difficult economic times starting in 2008, when single engine sales dropped by over 30 percent compared to the year prior, Mooney ceased production. Over the last five years, the Company that was started by Al Mooney more than 80 years ago has remained in business, focusing on customer support for the Mooney planes still in service. Given more positive economic indicators and the unique market niche for Mooney airplanes, the company feels confident about a sustaining future in the industry.

 

About Mooney  

Since its inception, the company has manufactured and delivered more than 11,000 aircraft worldwide. Today, more than 7,800 customers in the United States and 1,000 more overseas fly these proven, high-performance airplanes. For more information, visit www.mooney.com.

 

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[KSMooniac]

I had not heard of Soaring American Corporation, but it appears to be based in the LA area and led by Jerry Chen, who was mentioned in the other big thread.  I'm guessing he is a front for the greater Chinese entity, but who knows.  Regardless, I'll take this as very good news.

[mooneygirl]

Jerry Chen is the person who created the booth, banners and t-shirts at OSH 2013.  He is based in LA, and his office will be in Chino, CA.  Mooney is also taking an Acclaim to an aviation event in China.  They are going to market the American-made aircraft in the GA market in Asia.

[Bennett]

For what it is worth, Jerry Chen is a really sharp guy. I spent at least a half hour to 45 minutes talking to him at Oshkosh.  At the time I was amused by his "Mooney" business card with his title as Head of Business Development.  If he has much to do with the purchase, I think it is a good sign.  He was the one who was talking to me about what a "new" Mooney should look like - what features, etc. 

[Parker_Woodruff]

Jerry Chen is the person who created the booth, banners and t-shirts at OSH 2013. He is based in LA, and his office will be in Chino, CA. Mooney is also taking an Acclaim to an aviation event in China. They are going to market the American-made aircraft in the GA market in Asia.

Does this have something to do with Mooney's adventure the other day?

http://flightaware.com/live/flight/N887PS

[co2bruce]

This sounds great. I am a happy camper tonight.

[rbridges]

will this also mean parts for older models will be more readily available?

[aviatoreb]

This is really exciting in my opinion.  A Mooney aircraft in Kerryville building the latest new M20's, and hiring 100+ workers.

 

I don't know about you, but "we’ll have some very exciting announcements in the near future about the technological advances that will accompany the Acclaim Type S and Ovation series"

 

I am very curious and really excited to learn soon what this means.

 

My guess is at least it will be a re-engined M20.  Diesel?  Fadec TSIO550?  Turbine?  And/or a pressurized M20.  Or could it be a new line?  M24?  Maybe an all carbon M2x that looks like a mooney with a backward tail but is 10-15kts faster than an acclaim because of smoother seams and aerodynamics and CAD/FEM/CFD design cycle?  Or maybe the full Monty - a turbine pressurized 4 seat carbon M2x that cruises at 350TAS?

[bnicolette]

I agree Erik it would be really awesome to see them enter the single engine turbine market to compete head on with the TBM and Pilatus. Two aircraft that are selling like hot cakes!!  350 kts is quite a stretch and would make it faster than the TBM.  Then again, Mooney is all about the speed/economy.  

 

Exciting news and can't wait to see what the future brings.

[Rwsavory]

And there was much rejoicing throughout the Land...

[aviatoreb]

I agree Erik it would be really awesome to see them enter the single engine turbine market to compete head on with the TBM and Pilatus. Two aircraft that are selling like hot cakes!!  350 kts is quite a stretch and would make it faster than the TBM.  Then again, Mooney is all about the speed/economy.  

 

Exciting news and can't wait to see what the future brings.

 

I know - 350 is a big number.  Actually, the tbm850 is already the 6 seat mooney.  M in tbm is for mooney.  If I were dreaming, it would be a 4 seat turbine roughly the size of a M20 - smaller airframe than a pilatus, same engine, go faster.  The closest analogue is the Lancair EVO.  It goes 320 so says the adverts, so that is probably the practical limit.  But hey, 350 isn't that much more.

 

Actually, smart money and a less major mod is on a fadec tsio550 or maybe a diesel on an otherwise as today version of the M20.

[mooneygirl]

Mooney is attending an aviation show in China and is taking an Acclaim. 

[carqwik]

More importantly, what does the factory reopening mean for our airplane values, especially those of more recent vintage?  IMHO, it can only be a positive....

[DaV8or]

So... what does this mean about Mooney Worldwide Aviation and Planet Mooney? Am I not going to get to go to the Billionaire Mooney Resort?

 

Is this California company a front for a larger Chinese concern? A Google search on this company sure indicates this.

[AndyFromCB]

The first order of business should not be restarting production. If they do that, they will go tango uniform all over again. They should hire an engineer, I mean a real one instead of occasionally bringing out the ouija board and calling for Al, and get their landing gear redesigned to support 3600lb in order to compete  with Cirrus. There might be about 5 guys a year willing to drop $700K on an airplane with 4 seats and a 850lb useful load.

[KSMooniac]

The first order of business should not be restarting production. If they do that, they will go tango uniform all over again. They should hire an engineer, I mean a real one instead of occasionally bringing out the ouija board and calling for Al, and get their landing gear redesigned to support 3600lb in order to compete  with Cirrus. There might be about 5 guys a year willing to drop $700K on an airplane with 4 seats and a 850lb useful load.

 

I agree 100% with this.  There will have to be a long time to hire, train and spool-up the workforce.  Now would also be the time to continue implementing the Lean principles and get cost and hours out of the process.  A small engineering force could be put to work immediately with GW increase upgrades and any simple redesigns of details that take an inordinate amount of time to manufacture as well.  I suspect there is a lot of low-hanging fruit that could be picked to improve the new production models, and now is the time to go after it!

[mooneygirl]

They have hired two engineers.  They were both at the OSH booth.

[Jonwayne79]

How was this announced?  I can't find any info about it online.  

[DaV8or]

The first order of business should not be restarting production. If they do that, they will go tango uniform all over again. They should hire an engineer, I mean a real one instead of occasionally bringing out the ouija board and calling for Al, and get their landing gear redesigned to support 3600lb in order to compete  with Cirrus. There might be about 5 guys a year willing to drop $700K on an airplane with 4 seats and a 850lb useful load.

 

Agreed that they should not rush back to production. It would be that definition of insanity. They first need to decide if there is a future for the M20 design and second, does the M20 have anything to do with future aircraft?

 

A major redesign is required to make the M20 easier to manufacture and that I think is crucial to long term success with the airframe. So, since the redesign will no doubt require recertification and all the expense involved with that, is there any portion of the airframe, like say the wings, that can be used on the next airframe? If the answer is no, then I would say redesigning the M20 airframe for simply ease of construction is a waste of time and money.

 

As to the gross weight, I think there is more to it than just beefing up the landing gear. It has more to do with how the plane handles through out the entire flight envelope, so there are aerodynamic and weight and balance considerations as well. Please, please, please, Mooney, don't do the quick and dirty method and go for fixed gear.

 

I really wonder about the actual financials and organization of this new partnership. Is it a Chinese buy out, is it that the Chinese have a controlling interest, or are they really just loaning Mooney money? What about Mooney Worldwide Aviation? Does that have anything to do with these investors, or was that some other contender? Whatever they do with the restart and future plans, IMO, it would be wise to be more transparent and involved with their fan base than they have been in the past.

[Jonwayne79]

How was this announced?  I can't find any info about it online.  

Nevermind.  I found it on the AOPA website.

[Oscar Avalle]

Wow... this is indeed great news.... hope they don't forget the vintage planes....

[29-0363]

And here's another Mooney on a great adventure (possibly meeting up with N887PS?)

 

https://flightaware.com/live/flight/N432BG

[carusoam]

They need to hire two consultants immediately...

Scott from Kansas and Jolie from California!

Deep Hands-on Knowledge of Technology + Mooney Customer Psychology / Sociology = Piloting and Business $uccess.

Are you two available when the call comes from Kerrville?

Can you spare some time with Mr. Chen?

The Acclaim and O3 are spectacular machines. Improvements to the existing fleet would be a good add-on to the business. New airframes will be out of my ball park, but in 15 years I'll look forward to the next hand-me-down Mooney!

This is all good news.

Best regards,

-a-

[mooneygirl]

I found out tonight that the Ovation that went left for China last week was Jack Wiegand's.  For those of you who were at OSH you will remember that Jack is the young fellow who set the world record for round-the-world youngest pilot.  Jerry Chen invited Jack to go to China to the aviation summit or trade show in Xian.  Apparently the show runs from October 19-24th.  Jack will be telling of his trip around the world [but it didn't include China].

 

For whatever it is worth, I believe that we are talking about an investor not a buy out.

[mooneygirl]

The other thing that I think is important is something Dave Marten touched on at OSH.  Namely that we might not be the ones to spring $700,000.  on a new Acclaim, but as owners move up, it allows others to get in to the Mooney market.  The fellow that owned our Ovation purchased an Acclaim.  Because of this, and [at the time] a down turned economy we could buy the Ovation.

 

All of you know I would do whatever I can to help Mooney.  But my opinion is that there has to be a solid business plan and great leadership.  Handmade airplanes are not something that is going to generate capital quickly.  I don't know about Bill Rickert and Jerry Chen's engineering prowess, but I am hopeful they will be able to make some technological advances.

 

Also, I think MAPA homecoming is going to be a BLAST this year.  April 10-12th KERV. Be there