One Aviation received an order for 20 of its Eclipse 550 very light jets worth roughly $60 million as part of a recent dealership agreement with Jinggong General Aviation in China. Deliveries will extend over several years as One Aviation and Jinggong work to obtain Chinese certification and build up sales, training and support networks in China, said One Aviation CEO Alan Klapmeier.
The company announced the partnership late last month, citing the “untapped potential” of the Chinese market. In announcing the aircraft order at NBAA 2015 on Monday, Klapmeier added, “we’re very bullish on China. The issues in China are difficult, but represent a huge opportunity.” One Aviation expects to secure Chinese certification of the Eclipse 550 in about six months, he added.
At the same time, the company is anticipating European certification for the aircraft imminently. In July, One Aviation named Jet Lounge as its exclusive representative of the Eclipse 550, Eclipse SE and Kestrel 350 in Germany, Austria, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland and the non-French speaking portions of Switzerland and Belgium. Klapmeier noted that the 550’s predecessor aircraft, the Eclipse 500, had received European certification, but the aircraft had changed so much over time that it required revalidation.
In the U.S., One Aviation has struck a deal to provide Eclipse 550s to Ascension Air for its owner-flown fractional ownership model. Ascension Air founder Jamail Larkins said his clients have begun to look to step up from the Cirrus SR 22T GTS in his program, and the Eclipse was a good fit for the operation.
Larkins has ordered the first, which will be delivered in the next few weeks and be based at Ascension Air’s Atlanta base. He plans to order more as the market builds up for the aircraft in his program, including potential additions to the company’s Fort Lauderdale, Fla. base.
The orders come as One Aviation has been realigning the sales, customer support and production efforts for the Eclipse 550. The company, formed earlier this year from the merger of Eclipse Aviation and Kestrel Aircraft, has been working “to change the way people think about owning and operating an airplane.” This starts from a customer support effort, including the new five-year warranty rolled out last summer to lowering parts prices.
“We trying to make it as simple as possible,” Klapmeier said. The company had curbed its advertising and marketing efforts while it realigns its sales efforts, including increasing its sales staff and dealerships and changing the way the company interacts with potential customers. Beyond the sales and support efforts, the company is looking to smooth out the completions process, he added.
