Enough investors to restart production of the two-seat Symphony Aircraft SA-160 piston single have received a favourable preliminary report, but they are waiting until April to give the project the green light.
"We've contracted work out to an engineering company to study whether or not we can reduce the cost of manufacturing sufficiently to make it worthwhile to restart," says Lou Simons, the investor leading the creation of the North American Factory for Technologically Advanced Aircraft (NAFTAA), which will replace bankrupt Symphony Aircraft Industries of Three Rivers, Quebec.
Aviatech, which employs Symphony's former vice-president of engineering, is analysing production simplification and expansion of in-house parts manufacturing.
At the Three Rivers plant are several incomplete aircraft and all the machinery and parts left after liquidation, which extended for months longer than expected. "I'm the only one who's made a bid at the bankruptcy court," he says, "For all practical purposes we own the equipment."
Production could start in the second half of 2008, says Simons, to fill the niche left 20 years ago by the Cessna 152. Where the new company would locate is in the air. "Any Canadian location is going to have to make compensation to us for locating there, because I do not foresee the US dollar rising against the Canadian dollar in the 3-10 year period," Simons says.
Simons points to a "35% currency loss" between his first investment in 2004 and bankruptcy declaration on 22 January last year. "I basically put Symphony into liquidation because there was no point in building aircraft at contract process when you knew beforehand you were going to lose money," he says.
Simons' family lost $3 million, "and that's in either Canadian or American dollars", he says, since their values are equal now. Restarting under the NAFTAA name has garnered sufficient investor support, Simons says, and he is no longer the main backer.
Simons is confident the 160hp (120kW) Symphony, and a new 200hp model, will build on what he believes is a perfect safety record. About 55 SA-160s were sold between 2004 and 2007.
By 2010 production could reach between 80 and 110 a year, he says, as the aircraft still fills a niche in the market. Simons says he may remove the aerodynamic wheel coverings from the new models following feedback from training schools and the aircraft may be rebranded.
Source: FlightGlobal.com
