2009 New Business Jets: Recession raises the jet singles bar

Citing a combination of specific business challenges, market conditions and capital scarcity, the three leading single-engine VLJ contenders–Cirrus, Diamon

By Mark Huber • Contributor

October 1, 2009

Citing a combination of specific business challenges, market conditions and capital scarcity, the three leading single-engine VLJ contenders–Cirrus, Diamond and Piper–have either implicitly or explicitly moved their development and delivery schedules decidedly to the right. Almost 27 years after bizjet legend Allen Paulson announced the single-engine jet Gulfstream Peregrine and after the $120 million failure of VisionAire in 2002, the single-engine bizjet remains a market illusion. Here is what is going on with the top three single-engine VLJ programs:

Cirrus SJ50
Despite assurances this summer from CEO Brent Wouters that the Cirrus SJ50 “personal jet” program “is moving forward and we are making very good progress,” public cracks began to emerge earlier this year and even Wouters conceded, “The schedule today brings the product to market in 2012. Without external capital that is going to be extremely difficult to do.” And it appears, at least for now, that Cirrus’s parent, Arcapita, is done pumping money into the program.

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