Aircraft
Eclipse 500 price increases again
Albuquerque, N.M.-based Eclipse Aviation in late May increased the price of the Eclipse 500 very light jet by about a half million dollars, putting it clos

Albuquerque, N.M.-based Eclipse Aviation in late May increased the price of the Eclipse 500 very light jet by about a half million dollars, putting it closer in range to the $2.76 million (2008 $) Cessna Citation Mustang, a slightly larger competitor. The 30-percent price increase to $2.15 million (June 2008 $) nearly triples the original $837,000 price tag announced for the twinjet some 10 years ago. In the ensuing years, Eclipse has raised the VLJ’s price three times.

The price increase could affect hundreds of Eclipse customers, the company said, since only customers who already put down a 60-percent deposit were exempt from the hike. However, since air-taxi DayJet deferred its 16 deliveries this year, Eclipse last month offered these slots to existing customers at the previous $1.6 million price, provided that they immediately provide the deposit.