Cirrus Aircraft News

June 2010
 
Cirrus Aircraft Community,
 
Recently there has been much industry discussion regarding the future of 100LL aviation gasoline, the likely transition to an unleaded aviation fuel in the future and the possible impacts to owners, operators and general aviation industry health of a future fuel. While this subject is by no means a new issue, the recent Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issuance of an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR) regarding lead content in aviation fuel formally initiates a regulatory decision-making process and has increased awareness of this topic and its potential future impacts.  Cirrus has been actively working on this fuel issue for many years now and we are integrally involved in the industry leadership team working with the EPA, the FAA, and avgas producers. Simply, we are aggressively focused to achieve the very best path ahead and Cirrus will ensure that this path will keep your aircraft flying with the minimum possible transition and operating costs.
 
Many aircraft manufacturers - including Cirrus - and GA industry organizations agree that a transition to unleaded fuel is appropriate. Moreover we collectively agree that every effort should be made to find a transparent or near-transparent replacement fuel for 100LL.  However, a very significant amount of research completed over the last 10 years to identify a suitable 100 octane, or near 100 octane, unleaded fuel has not yet resulted in a clear solution for a replacement fuel.  There are several encouraging new high octane unleaded fuel formulations being evaluated, such as Swift fuel and GAMI’s G100UL, and Cirrus is supportive of all these efforts. However, the challenge with these and any new fuels is in having to address many issues beyond simply octane rating. Those other issues include operation at temperature extremes, fuel stability over time, health and safety aspect of the fuel and its combustion products, material compatibility, ‘producibility’, cost and so on. As a result and at present, the octane level of a future fuel is uncertain. We do know that the lowest octane level that we may have to contend with is 94, or 94UL as it is called. This is essentially what is left when the tetra-ethyl lead is removed from the 100LL. Cirrus is working on contingency plans in case we are stuck with a 94 octane fuel,  but let me be clear: Cirrus Aircraft does not believe that a 94UL solution is desirable for its owners or the health of the industry, and will strive for a better replacement fuel.
 
What is the industry plan?  The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA), Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA), General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA), National Air Transportation Association (NATA), National Business Aviation Association (NBAA), American Petroleum Institute (API) and the National Petrochemical and Refiners Association (NPRA) are collectively committed to working with EPA and FAA toward the development of a Future Avgas Strategy & Transition Plan (FAST) to help achieve significant reductions in lead emissions from GA aircraft along a timeline which balances environmental benefit with aviation safety, technical feasibility and impact upon the GA industry.  It’s clear objectives are to:

• Identify the best possible unleaded avgas replacement fuel by working with the avgas producers, fuels research organizations, owners and operators, the Coordinating Research Council (CRC), ASTM groups, engine and airframe manufacturers, and FAA.
• Consider the impact, if any, on the existing fleet and fuel infrastructure and long term availability (including cost).
• Develop a transition plan to unleaded avgas that preserves the health of the industry and reduces impacts on owners and operators.

This avgas stakeholder group leadership team is also engaging in collaborative efforts with aircraft owners groups, such as COPA.  While research continues toward the best unleaded fuel solution, the stakeholder group is evaluating a two step transition process. First, provide near term reductions in lead emissions from GA by reducing the lead content of 100LL that would be completely transparent to existing aircraft.   Second, define a transition to a viable unleaded avgas along an approximate 10 year timeline depending upon the impact on aircraft and/or fuel production and distribution infrastructure. 
 
What is Cirrus Aircraft doing?  Our efforts are focused in three main directions.

• Leadership & Advocacy. Cirrus chairs the primary industry working group team which began as a GAMA-based committee and has expanded to collaborate with AOPA, EAA, and other key stakeholder groups. This provides Cirrus with the information and access to the key stakeholders, including oil companies, to help guide efforts that will promote the best solution, which, again, is preferably a 100 octane or near-100 octane transparent replacement avgas.
• Fuels Research Support. Cirrus has availed itself to support the needs of aviation fuels research entities. This support can range from on-aircraft testing, to chemical compatibility testing for airframe structures and system components, to feedback on operational and cost aspects. Cirrus also participates in the Coordinating Research Council (CRC) technical research group and the ASTM unleaded fuel group.
• Flexible Aircraft Solutions. Due to the uncertainty involved in this issue, Cirrus is developing solutions for both existing and new aircraft that address a wide range of possible fuel specification outcomes. This doesn’t change our commitment to finding a transparent solution. This week we are introducing a new aircraft model in the SR22 family which is flexible to a wide range of future fuel octane ratings. At the same time, we are working help ensure that all of our aircraft models, both new and in the field, will be compatible with a future unleaded fuel in either a transparent sense or with reasonable upgrade paths.

At Cirrus we are always thinking and planning ahead, and as in this case, sometimes years ahead. We understand the well-placed concern around the fuel issue as it affects the Cirrus Aircraft community. Your priorities are our priorities and we will help take care of our fleet and your well-being. 
 
Again, we plan to communicate regularly on this issue and encourage feedback to better tailor our efforts to your needs and address concerns.
 
Best regards,

Brent Wouters
President & CEO
Cirrus Aircraft
 

Brent Wouters, Cirrus President and CEO, appeared on Fox Business News on Tuesday, May 11th to discuss Cirrus Aircraft’s 2010 global partnership with RedBull Air Race and strong first quarter performance. SEE the video.

In this week's issue of Flight International, Cirrus President and CEO, Brent Wouters, describes his professional background, how it brought him to his position of leadership at Cirrus Aircraft and his strategy for Cirrus' future success.  

Read the article here:  Flight international article 2-10.pdf (1.82 mb)

See the entire issue here.

This year for Labor Day weekend, I flew my wife and two boys in a Cirrus aircraft to our family reunion in southern Missouri (Bolivar/Lake Pomme de Terre). Just five days before the reunion was to start, the location was changed to here from Kansas City; an additional 150 miles further away for all the families. Of course we were traveling the furthest by a long shot, but it meant the least inconvenience to us. Because the additional 150 miles to us was less than an hour more in the Cirrus, and two hours or more to family members who were driving, despite their living much closer.

In fact, at a duration of three hours flying, it took us less time to get there than all other family members who were as close as Kansas City. On Monday, everyone left Bolivar at noon, but my family and I were the first to arrive home despite living over 700 nm away.

If it weren't for the Cirrus, my wife and I would have had to take more time enroute, and we'd have had to leave early to get my boys back in time for the first day of school. Instead, we were able to spend the extra time with family. A perfect Labor Day weekend!

Sunday, August 16, 2009, Cirrus CEO Brent Wouters took his two sons to the PGA Championship in Chaska, MN.  They arrived in time to watch Y.E. Yang and Tiger Woods finish their warm ups on the driving range and move to the practice tee just beside the first tee.  As it rained they watched the Yang/Woods pair tee off before proceeding to their bleacher seats on the 15th hole.

As you may know, Mr. Yang eagled hole #14, then hit his drive in the fairway on hole #15, and proceeded to par the hole.  After he holed out, he turned and threw his ball into the bleachers at #15.  “It went over my head - I never even stood up - but it bounced off of a couple people, over my shoulder and into my hands,” described Brent Wouters.  “The cameras were already there, and the camera man asked me to show him the ball.  My mug appeared on TV and then the phone started ringing.  I had 10 emails, 9 texts, and 5 voice mails before I got to the car, and since then I have had about 100 others contact me to let me know that they saw me.”

Congratulations Brent…for scoring such a cool souvenir!  WATCH the video here.

This past weekend COPA and Cirrus Aircraft welcomed our owners back to Duluth for the seventh edition of the annual "Migration". More than 100 Cirrus aircraft and over 300 registered attendees made the return trip. As seems to be the case every year, this year's event eclipsed expectations in terms of attendance, the number and quality of forum presentations and excitement.  The kick-off party, sponsored by Garmin and Cirrus Aircraft, was highlighted by a Vision Jet fly-by that set the tone for the whole weekend.

In addition to all the information coming out of the forums and trade show presentations, Cirrus also held a meeting of Vision Jet Deposit Holders to bring future clients up to speed on all development activities.  Cirrus continues to make significant progress on the program.  We have basically completed flight testing of the prototype, largely defined the loft for both the wing and the fuselage which determines the final shape of those items, and begun the detailed design phase which will take the next 18-21 months. 

The Vision Jet program remains a key strategic initiative for Cirrus and is the central component of the Company's long-term growth strategy.  Cirrus is devoting the vast majority of its product development resources to complete this program in a timely fashion.  While the program is currently funded through internally-generated cash flows, we continue to look outside Cirrus for investments that might help accelerate the product to market. 

Brent Wouters, Cirrus Aircraft President and CEO commented "Recently, Alan Klapmeier approached Cirrus about putting together a group of investors to potentially acquire a major interest in the Vision program, under his leadership, and Cirrus has agreed to cooperate with Alan as he investigates this possibility.  The Company has several such potential avenues for external capital to fund the program at a faster rate, and some of the interested parties have submitted proposals to Cirrus for consideration. While Alan publicly announced his intentions, we would note that at this juncture there has been no formal proposal, no specific offer and we are not currently involved in negotiations toward such a deal."

Wouters concluded, "While the Vision program justifiably gets a lot of media attention, it is important to see its development in the context of the entire company's recent progress.  We just announced increased piston production to eight (8) aircraft per week as we see signals of stronger demand both domestically and internationally.  That combined with some of the organizational decisions we made last year to better position the company to prosper in more challenging economic times have us very encouraged as we look ahead to the second half of the year."

Plane & Pilot Magazine, June 2009, reports "...the handling qualities of the Cirrus are as gentle and responsive as they come..." and ..."cruising at a maximum speed of 219 knots, the turbonormalizer-equipped plane is quite a hot rod."  CLICK HERE to read the full article.

Alan Klapmeier, Chairman of Cirrus Design Corporation, today named Brent Wouters to the post of Chief Executive Officer effective February 1, 2009.  CLICK HERE to read the Press Release issued today.

Brent Wouters, CEO, Cirrus Aircraft