mike_elliott Posted April 5, 2014 Report Posted April 5, 2014 Tonight At SunNFun, Mooney CEO Dr. Jerry Chen announced 1) The factory will employ 185 people by years end 2) 6 planes will be built in 2014, and production will increase to 2 per month for the first half of 2015 and 3 per month the second half of 2015 3) Premier Aircraft Sales will have an ongoing sales and service relationship with Mooney 4) While Mooney will expand internationally, Kerrville will remain as its roots 5) the first production Mooney off the assembly line in 2014 will have every available option and will be Auctioned off starting now. The high Bidder will be announced on July 11, 2014. All proceeds of the auction will go to establish a Mooney Museum, and the high bidder will have a board seat on this entity. MAPA and Trey Hughes will have an involvement with the Museum. 6) The rest of this years production run are in essence, sold. 7) They are trimming the processes to get production time to 2500 hours per plane 8) They are keeping the option of a "lesser" IE 201 production open pending fiscal sense. 3 Quote
mooneygirl Posted April 5, 2014 Report Posted April 5, 2014 Thank you for the update Mike. I love the idea of the museum and glad that it has come into existence. We must preserve this history. 1 Quote
Piloto Posted April 5, 2014 Report Posted April 5, 2014 What is the starting bid? I just want to make sure I do not go over. José Quote
201er Posted April 5, 2014 Report Posted April 5, 2014 Tonight At SunNFun, Mooney CEO Dr. Jerry Chen announced 4) While Mooney will expand internationally, Kerrville will remain as its roots Not what he was going around saying in China.... Quote
Hector Posted April 5, 2014 Report Posted April 5, 2014 What is the starting bid? I just want to make sure I do not go over. José Actually that question was asked. There was a little confusion but essentially they said no minimum bid. You can start out the bid at $1 if you like. In order to bid, however, you have to submit your financial information so you can be pre-approved at which point you'll get a password so you can bid online. It will be an Acclaim with all the bells and whistles and the new owner gets to pick a custom paint job. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD 1 Quote
mike_elliott Posted April 5, 2014 Author Report Posted April 5, 2014 Thank you for the update Mike. I love the idea of the museum and glad that it has come into existence. We must preserve this history. Isn't that cool? The question is which of us will be the new board member Quote
Piloto Posted April 5, 2014 Report Posted April 5, 2014 Actually that question was asked. There was a little confusion but essentially they said no minimum bid. You can start out the bid at $1 if you like. In order to bid, however, you have to submit your financial information so you can be pre-approved at which point you'll get a password so you can bid online. It will be an Acclaim with all the bells and whistles and the new owner gets to pick a custom paint job. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD Well if the minimum is bid $1 and I bid $5 and show a photocopy of my Lincoln bill then I well get pre-approved and get a password. Not bad!!! José Quote
BigTex Posted April 5, 2014 Report Posted April 5, 2014 Right now, the bid sets at $600K... Mastercard or Visa???? Quote
mike_elliott Posted April 5, 2014 Author Report Posted April 5, 2014 Right now, the bid sets at $600K... Mastercard or Visa???? If it is who I think it is bidding the 600 AMU's, this wont be an issue, and yes, he may put it on his Southwest Visa for the bonus points Quote
DaV8or Posted April 5, 2014 Report Posted April 5, 2014 All good news I guess. Just keep making vintage parts, just keep making vintage parts... <praying emoticon> 2 Quote
fantom Posted April 8, 2014 Report Posted April 8, 2014 A bit more from AvWeb: Mooney is back, and although they didn't have a booth at Sun 'n Fun, the new executive staff arrived on Friday to meet with the faithful and the press to provide a snapshot of the new company and its plans. CEO Jerry Chen told the crowd of 100 or so in a tent behind the Florida Air Museum that he and his partners have big plans for Mooney, including expansion into global markets, though he emphasized that the facility in Kerrville, Texas, will not be going away. Those ambitious plans will be backed up with about $50 million in investment, he said, "over the foreseeable future." Right now, he said, "2014 is a year of transformation." The Kerrville plant already has about 85 employees, and will have 140 by the end of the year. The executive staff is redesigning the production line and updating technology to be more efficient while still assuring quality workmanship. "We want to do this right, and this takes time," Chen said. The company has set a goal to reduce the build time from 4,000 hours to 2,500. Chen also announced that the very first new Acclaim Type S will be sold to the highest bidder via an online auction, and the money will be donated to a new nonprofit organization that will work to preserve Mooney history. No minimum bid will be set, he said, but bidders must be pre-qualified to participate. Chen said the company plans to deliver six new airplanes by the end of this year, and build 30 more next year. The first two models to be produced will be the Ovation3, with a base price of $649,000, and the Acclaim, with a base price of $699,000. "Those prices include many standard features that were options before," said Tom Bowen, chief operating officer. Both airplanes are powered by Continental Gold Standard engines, and include Garmin G1000 avionics, with synthetic vision, terrain warning, and XM weather. Chen said the new nonprofit will build a museum on the Kerrville campus, "so the 80 years of Mooney history will not be lost." The organization also will raise money for scholarships and grants to preserve aviation history. The online auction for the first new Mooney is open now, he said, at the Mooney website, under the "First to Fly" tab. The auction will continue until July 11. The winning bidder then can come to the Mooney exhibit at EAA AirVenture at Oshkosh and take delivery in a special ceremony. "The winner will then become a key part of Mooney history," Chen said. Quote
FlyDave Posted April 9, 2014 Report Posted April 9, 2014 Wow - a $50,000,000 investment. They have BIG plans for the company! Maybe they'll develop a VLJ or turboprop? The ROI on $50,000,000 selling piston singles would be quite long - unless they're building them in China (for pennies on the dollar of what it costs in Kerrville) and selling them in China for a large factor over what they'll sell for here (I think I remember reading a $1,000,000 price tag for a new Mooney in China). VERY Raw numbers: Sale price of plane: $700,000 Margin per plane (VERY Generous at 20%): $140,000 They would have to sell 357 planes to break even. This takes into account no additional factors such as the cost or money, etc.. And I think 20% margin is being very generous. But I wish them the best! Quote
mike_elliott Posted April 9, 2014 Author Report Posted April 9, 2014 One of these guys is bidding 4 Quote
KSMooniac Posted April 9, 2014 Report Posted April 9, 2014 One of these guys is bidding IMG_4698.jpg Your flight instruction business must be booming! 2 Quote
mike_elliott Posted April 9, 2014 Author Report Posted April 9, 2014 Your flight instruction business must be booming! I have to disqualify myself as a serious bidder. My life depends on it (but I am booked 2 months out for instruction, with just a few random days here and there) 1 Quote
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.