As a district court in Weilheim, Germany, opened insolvency proceedings against Fairchild Dornier on July 1, the fate of the Bavarian regional jet builder hung on the fading hope that a large established aerospace company might come to its rescue. But by the middle of last month, after company receivers fired 80 employees and placed another 1,800 “on hold” at 79 percent of their salaries, Italy’s Alenia and Earl Robinson’s Alliance Aircraft had replaced heavy hitters EADS, Boeing and Bombardier as the remaining “serious” suitors for the beleaguered manufacturer.
Existing in a state of virtual limbo at press time, Fairchild Dornier was broken into four pieces by insolvency administrator Eberhard Braun in an attempt to render it more easily digestible by smaller companies. The largest piece–the 728 and 928 manufacturing division–remained Braun’s biggest challenge, given its need for another $400 million to complete 728 certification and $1 billion to finish development of the 928. Alenia, the half-owner of Franco-Italian turboprop builder ATR, expressed the most interest after its partner in the joint venture, EADS, ruled out taking a stake in the German company.
