Wed, Jan 19, 2005
A Wonderful Little Airplane May Be Making Its Final
Approach
The ongoing descent of
a once-promising GA manufacturer continues as Bethany, OK's
Commander Aircraft Company has proceeded from the protection of
Chapter 11 bankruptcy (which would have allowed for reorganization)
to a seemingly final Chapter 7 liquidation. The move was pushed by
a secured creditor who apparently couldn't see eye to eye with
Commander Boss Wirt Walker, who has been presiding over the decline
of this company for several years. Wirt Walker III was the
Chairman, President, and CEO of Aviation General, Inc., the holding
company for Commander Aircraft Company, and Strategic Jet Services,
Inc., which shut down in the latter part of 2002.
The Commander 114/115 line was lauded throughout the industry
for it's comfort, handling and stability; but was also seen as
overpriced, poorly marketed, and modestly supported in the years
since Walker reportedly took a more direct role in the company.
They built some 200 airplanes over a decade (from '92 to '02)
before the market softened, and the company found itself with few
sales prospects. While Walker blamed 9/11 for their
doldrums, companies like Cirrus, Diamond, Lancair and Cessna
saw their fortunes improve -- in some cases, dramatically.
Walker continues to insist that while the company may be gone,
that there is still a future for the Commander series and he is
entertaining offers for the assets. There were two close calls for
Commander in the last year where parties appeared to be ready to
buy in and rescue the company. Each deal involved an investment of
some $2.8 million in exchange for an 80 percent share of the
business. In both cases, the deals appeared to be all but done, but
fell apart at the last minute.
Commander filed Chapter 11 protection in December of 2002,
claiming some $3.7 million in debts. A reorganization plan was
approved last year but was, ultimately, unsuccessful. The original
Commander 112 single-engine line was introduced by Rockwell
International Corp. in 1972, producing some 1100 airframes.
Commander picked up the single engine series from Gulfstream
Aerospace in 1988 and immediately set on an upgrade path that
extensively modernized the airframe.
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