Like the mythical phoenix, the AASI Jetcruzer 450/500 may arise from its ashes to fly again, this time as a single-turbofan, experimental airplane rather than a certified single-turboprop pusher. It was in April 2002 that Advanced Aerodynamics & Structures Inc. (AASI), after completing its acquisition of the bankrupt Mooney Aircraft Co., changed its name, as expected, to Mooney Aerospace Group (MASG).
Then, without fanfare, it indefinitely suspended development of the Jetcruzer 500, a slightly longer and pressurized derivative of the unpressurized Jetcruzer 450 that was FAA certified in June 1994 but never entered service. MASG sold the Jetcruzer program lock, stock and barrel at auction in January last year, but it took a full year to complete the sale. The winning bidder, Michael Spearman, owner of Innova Aircraft in Conroe, Texas, acquired the Jetcruzer type certificate and all tooling, inventory, airframes and intellectual data for an undisclosed price. (It has been incorrectly reported elsewhere that he paid $125,000, but Spearman told AIN this was the opening bid price. He would not reveal the price he paid.) Innova Aircraft does airplane modifications and builds kitplanes, but Spearman established a separate company, Jetcruzer LLC, specifically for the Jetcruzer project.
Spearman intends to turn the canard-winged Jetcruzer into a single-engine jet by replacing its Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A turboprop with a JT15D turbofan and sell the airplane as a kit. With a ready supply of refurbished JT15Ds coming off Citations and Beechjet 400s, he estimates he can sell the Jetcruzer homebuilt for $800,000 to $900,000, depending on avionics.
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