Eclipse Jet LP to Offer Buy-Back Program

Fred George fgeorge@san.rr.com

If Eclipse Jet LP succeeds in its bid to buy the assets of insolvent Eclipse Aviation, the firm plans to offer a factory repurchase program to current Eclipse 500 owners, according to Mason Holland, of Eclipse Jet LP's founders.

The firm would completely refurbish the repurchased used aircraft, installing the latest version NG avionics, software and flight into known icing systems, then resell the aircraft at a profit. To increase market demand, buyers of the refurbished aircraft would be provided with a factory warranty. Owners would be given a portion of the net proceeds from the resale, in addition to the cash paid by Eclipse Jet for repurchase.

"I've already made offers to a number of owners," Holland said. He believes that many early Eclipse 500 owners would be interested in selling their aircraft for what they paid for them. The cost of upgrading the aircraft might be as much as $400,000 to $500,000. Holland believes Eclipse Jet LP's total investment, including cost of repurchasing the aircraft might be about $1.5-million. Refurbished aircraft might fetch as much as $1.9-million in the resale market. The previous owners would be given a portion of the $400,000 net profit as an added incentive to participate in the repurchase program.

Holland, though, believes Eclipse Jet LP eventually must start up limited production of new Eclipse 500 aircraft "to bring back the value proposition". Production of new aircraft would help Eclipse Jet LP rebrand the EA 500 and establish market price. In addition, the aegis of the OEM is vital to upgrading and refurbishing aircraft because Eclipse Jet LP, as the new factory owner, would have the FAA-endorsed quality assurance program needed to sign off on certified upgrade components, including parts needed for Flight Into Known Icing approval.

Photo by Alan Radecki via Wikipedia