The fate of Grob Aerospace could be decided by the end of December as two buyers vie to acquire the beleaguered German aircraft manufacturer.
According to Grob insolvency administrator Dr Michael Jaffé, the interested parties include Germany's H3 Aerospace and Chinese manufacturer Guizhou Aviation Industry Corporation, part of the state-owned AVIC I. Both offers were presented and discussed at a creditors' meeting on Monday and the successful bidder will be selected before the end of the month.
According to the administrator's office, both bids focus on acquiring Grob's piston-powered military training aircraft, leaving the future of the SPn light business jet in doubt. "Both bidders plan to continue production with 70-100 employees.
"One option is talking about starting production in January, while the second talks about the end of February," says Jaffé. "Both alternatives are valid, but for both versions there are still conditions that need to be met - both can also fail," he adds.
Jaffé says talks about securing a future for the SPn continue, but they are not necessarily connected to the training aircraft business in Mattsies.
"There are different option we need to look at but it will be difficult in the current financial situation," he says.
Source: Flight International