Aircraft

Adam Aircraft has secured $105 million of financing that paves the way for the US developer to complete certification and accelerate production of the A700 very light jet and ramp up its A500 piston-powered sibling to full-scale production.

This capital, offered by new and existing investors, marks the third and probably final round of funding for Adam. "It allows us to aggressively pursue our product development and production growth plans," says company founder and chief executive Rick Adam.

The company has secured around 400 orders to date with the A700 accounting for the bulk of these sales. "We are transitioning from a research and development company into a production company and are working towards an automotive production process that will allow us to mass produce our aircraft," says the company.

Assembly lines could be established across its bases in Ogden, Utah, as well as Denver and Pueblo in Colorado.

Adam certificated the A500 two years ago, but has only delivered a handful of aircraft to date. "The production process has been slow and cumbersome," the company says. "The new process will speed up the A500 production from around one aircraft a year to one every 12 weeks initially, increasing to one every six weeks. Plans call for around 10 A700s a month."

The aircraft, which has completed nearly 1,000h of testing, is earmarked for certification and first deliveries next year. The fourth test aircraft is to enter flight testing this year, and the final two aircraft will be tested in the fourth quarter.

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