Piper Aircraft announced yesterday that it has placed the PiperJet Altaire program “under review,” clouding the single-engine jet’s future. It also named Simon Caldecott as its interim president and CEO, making him the fifth person to hold the position since Imprimis Brunei acquired the Vero Beach, Fla. aircraft manufacturer in May 2009. In the same announcement, the company revealed that Piper executive vice president Randy Groom “has left the company.”
The review of the PiperJet comes on the heels of the NBAA Convention, where Piper prominently displayed a cabin mockup of the jet at its booth. In fact, one Piper dealer told AIN at last week’s show that the $2.8 million PiperJet continued to see “considerable” customer demand despite the weakened market for light jets. According to a Piper spokesman, “Everything is on the table” during the PiperJet review, “including cancellation.” Results of the review will be released “soon,” he said.
