Mooney Factory

[sellis]

Hello Mooney Followers,

It is time for all of you to take a deep breath and listen to what I have to say about Mooney International, now that I am allowed to speak.

We have been working for months with Dr. Jerry Chen, President of Soaring America on a deal to provide funding to restart production of Mooney aircraft in Kerrville, TX. This last Friday, all of the necessary hurdles being jumped, Mooney Aviation Company became Mooney International Corporation, with a funding injection by Soaring America. Soaring America is a U.S owned company, with its home office located in the Los Angeles, Ca area.

If you were to meet Jerry, you would find a very intelligent, likable guy. I mean this guy is a full Professor of Aeronautics at UCLA, and he saw the potential in resurrecting one of the most advanced aircraft designs in the world, and growing on that for future Aerospace products. When Jerry first approached us, one of the first visions he presented to us was to maintain a high quality aircraft brand, made in the USA by American workers, sold worldwide including up and coming Emerging markets worldwide. Restarting Production of the Ovation and the Acclaim Type S is an expensive proposition, and Soaring America has the kind if financial backing to get this place up and running again. You, as Mooney owners can expect a serious improvement in parts flow and customer care in the coming months. An example would be the Elevator skins, which have not been available for years, are now shipping from the factory in Kerrville to needy customers everywhere. Why? Because Jerry spent $16,000 to replace the rubber press plate on our Large Hydro Press that had deteriorated beyond use several years ago. We are currently receiving bids to refurbish the factory, and are looking to hire upwards of 100 people in the coming year. This will allow us to start Production of new aircraft in early 2014, delivering later in the year.

Last week, an unfortunate, and inaccurate Press Release found its way onto some of the internet aviation websites. That subsequently lit up the chatlines with all manner of speculation and comment, including one commenter that was ready to sell his F Model because “he wasn’t going to put any Chinese Junk” on his airplane. Really??

Allow me to present some FACTS to you, that you may not be aware of:

 

- Mooney International Corporation is a U.S. Corporation. Want proof? Friday I transferred the Type Certificate 2A3 to Mooney International Corp. under the authority of FAA Order 8110.4C Paragraph 3-2(f)(2) which states: “Certificate Transfer to a Domestic Holder. When a TC holder transfers a TC within the U.S., the FAA must reissue the TC immediately. The TC holder submits the original TC to the ACO after completing the transfer endorsement on the reverse side of the TC. This changes the TC holder, and the effective date is the date of the TC holder’s signature…

 

 - I personally do not care if another country makes “junk”, or not. I am Chief Engineer for Mooney International, and Mooney International makes aircraft and its parts, in Kerrville, Texas that conform to our Type Design. The people that are, and will be employed here are Americans that live in the Kerrville area. Always has been, always will be.

- Is the source of this financing originating in other countries? Probably. Let me remind you of another fact: Mooney, for more than the last decade, has been financed by (GASP!) European investors. So if the source of the financing that funds a U.S Company, building a U.S. product in the U.S built by U.S. workers bothers you, then maybe you should check out one of our competitors. Oh, wait! Most of them are owned by foreign companies! But not Mooney International. Oh, and by the way, Dr. Chen’s lineage is not Chinese, rather Taiwanese.

 

In closing, I hope I have been able to put these rumors to rest. If I were you, I would look for news releases that come from here. What is happening here in Kerrville is GREAT NEWS, and should be greeted as such.

 

Bill Eldred

Director of Engineering

Mooney International Corp.

[Bennett]

Thanks for the straight talk, and putting bogus Press releases to bed. I've mentioned Jerry Chen in my postings before. Seems like a really great guy, and one with the academic credentials to know what he is talking about.  Good news for all of us.

[aviatoreb]

Welcome to Mooneyspace Bill!  And welcome back to production Mooney International Corp!

 

I for one am over the Moon(ey) for the grand come-back.

Erik

 

P.S.  Many of my best friends are professors....

[Oscar Avalle]

Dear Bill, thank you for your clarification. I agree this is a great opportunity for Mooney. It will certainly not be easy, but hopefully it will work out well. Congratulations!

[rbridges]

It's nice to have someone from Mooney frequenting this forum.  Keeping my fingers crossed.

[chrisk]

I look forward to seeing new Mooneys rolling out the door, as well as new parts for the existing fleet.  And I would love to see a program where the factory could perform certain upgrades to my existing airframe/power plant at a reasonable price.   Everything from a new engine to a new interior.  i.e. make 231 into a 252 or even better.

[Rich]

This sounds like wonderful news! Thank you very much for the straight talk!

[mooneygirl]

Thank you Stacey and Bill: we are proud of you and all the workers who make the best airplane in the world! Hand-made in the USA, Go Mooney!

[jlunseth]

A few years ago on a non-aviation related Internet forum, the moderators put up some information that Target was a French company (gasp).  It was about the time that W was having difficulty with the French and they were not very popular.  It is not and never was a French company, it is based here in Minneapolis, headquarters right downtown.  Tracing it down, it appeared that the rumor got started because Target customers, making jests about where they bought their inexpensive merchandise, would pronounce the company name as "Tar-jay," to make it sound French and therefore fancy.  I bought my wastebasket for $9.99 at Tar-jay.

 

People need to reserve judgment on rumor, and wait for the facts.  That works most of the time.

 

We are all elated that Mooney is out from under and will be up and running!

[N9660M]

Bill, thanks for providing us the facts.  And if it's good for Mooney airplanes and those of us who own them, then the source of the funding isn't important.  All part of the global economy we live in today.  Take care - Jim

[Seth]

Bill-

 

Thank you and great news.  Looking forward to watching developments as they occur in Kerville.  Please do not keep us in the dark when you are allowed to talk, and we'd LOVE more updates as events warrent from the factory.

 

Again, thank you.

 

-Seth

[jkb458]

Hey Bill,

 

Thanks for the excellent news!!!

 

I'm very excited that Mooney will be making airplanes once again.  Looking forward to seeing new Mooneys on the ramp.

 

 

Best regards,

 

Jeff Bridges

[fantom]

SIERRA HOTEL, Bill, and thanks for the wonderful news and the timely answer!

 

Mooney International sure has a nice ring to it. Great job from your staff in Kerrville, holding the operation together. Without your efforts, this wouldn't have happened!

 

[MARZ]

So how bout them "drop in tours" at Kerrville?  I for one would like to witness the rebirth! 

[kevinw]

This is excellent news. I know I'm a little biased but I would love to see the 201 back in production some day. With todays high fuel prices I think the economical 201 could be an attractive option for a lot of people.

[MB65E]

Well done, great info!

Thanks for sticking around!

-Matt

[RocketAviator]

Bill,

Like several before have said "thanks for the straight talk".

This sounds like great news to me both as a Mooney owner and an American  with an American Business!

 

Best of luck to you and the new Mooney Company!

[kmyfm20s]

Thanks Bill, Great news!

[HopePilot]

The phoenix rises!

[DAVIDWH]

"PREACHING TO THE CHOIR".

AMEN!

[M20F]

Mooney power!

[co2bruce]

Thanks for the straight info Bill. It was great to see you guys at Oshkosh this year, I knew that was a sign of good things to come. I know, that Mooney International ( that will take some getting used to) realizes they have a very loyal customer base that has kept the Mooney brand alive, and flies their Mooney banners proudly. We look forward to seeing new Mooneys in the air. Thank you for your hard work keeping the company's together and getting us to this point.

Bruce Spencer

N2170B

[DS1980]

I hope the business model remains flexible. The Ovation and Type S are great, but they aren't the best Mooneys ever made, and are the airframes that priced Mooney out of existence. Why not bring the J or 231 back? These have the same interior room and speed as the competition, but are more efficient. Either way, awesome job on, first, bringing back a brand, and having the correct priorities.

[rocketman]

Dear Mr. Bill and Dr. Chen

 

I am so supportive of the cooperation of Dr. Chen and Mooney Aircraft. As  a current  owner of three Mooney's, a 1982 201, 1980/1992 Mooney Rocket, and most recently a purchase of a 1994 Mooney TLS/Bravo, I have more "skin" (pun intended) in the game as most anyone else here at MS and elsewhere. I heard of Dr. Chen and his incredible credentials and feel Mooney International is in great hands once again. Your eloquently stated opening on this thread exhibits the enthusiasm that we all need. Perhaps the doubters in the past (which I was not) just didn't have enough knowledge or communication to understand the value that our new owner could bring to the table. 

 

I purchased my first Mooney in 1988 (N201M, a 1977 201) and have owned Mooneys since - and for one absolute reason. Because it is the finest flying machine ever made in the world. Everything in aviation is a trade-off - speed, space, efficiency, safety, cost, and comfort. MOONEY HAS THEM ALL! So I put my hard earned dollars and my life  behind the planes they produce since 1988 - 25 years!

 

Aviation is a hobby only to me - I fly because I want to, and probably most MS readers are too. I derive no income from Mooney planes and I am not even commercially rated. I spend many thousands of dollars per year because I want to, and I love to, and I want to support those who support me.

 

Which brings me to my final point - I believe we are all here to support Mooney - and we will. Work with us, we are a wealth of information of the machine and possibly the best ambassadors Mooney can have. Keep us in the loop, give us excellent quality, efficient production schedules for parts (and service maybe) at a fair price. We are your army, navy and marines, and best of all, we will all work for you in our networking and aviation relationships for free.  

 

Mooneyspace is my home address as is others. I go here every day to learn what others are experiencing and may even contribute a little knowledge though I am not aviation mechanically inclines. Please come here daily, listen to your soldiers as you might have always in the past. Don't ignore your best supporters, because every day should be a new learning experience. 

 

I believe that Mooney is in a new set of excellent golden hands and the future looks promising. As the economy recovers, so too will GA. And hopefully with the new found skills of a successful aeronautical engineer that sees the excellence of our "magic carpet machines" and the future of Mooney International, we can grow this aviation tide together!

 

Ronald S. Dubin

[docket]

I am ready for a Type S.  Bring it on.