July 31, 2009 Cirrus Says More Jet Talks Possible

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by	Russ Niles
	Editor-in-Chief

Cirrus Aircraft CEO Brent Wouters opened the door to future negotiations with former CEO Alan Klapmeier to buy the VisionJet program. Wouters said Klapmeier's decision to suspend talks "doesn't mean our conversations are over with Alan" but added that he also wasn't sure why Klapmeier made that decision. He said there had been numerous discussions about a potential deal and it was his impression that they were getting close to an agreement. Wouters stressed Cirrus will continue to develop the jet as part of its product line. "All I can do is continue to run the business," he said.

In an earlier interview, Klapmeier was not optimistic that a deal could be reached. "We felt that we really tried to stretch our offer to something that would work but it doesn't appear that it would work," he said. Klapmeier remains chairman of the board of Cirrus.