ONE Aviation has gotten the OK from the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) to move forward with its acquisition by Chinese-backed investment company Citiking International. The ownership change is part of ONE Aviation’s plan to exit Chapter 11 bankruptcy. According to an announcement from law firm Paul Hastings LLP, which represented the company in the CFIUS process, Citiking will own 100 percent of the Albuquerque, New Mexico-based aircraft manufacturer following the acquisition.
As previously reported by AVweb, ONE Aviation filed for bankruptcy in October 2018. The company reportedly owes $198.8 million in total debts, approximately $53.2 million of which comes from development loans given by state and local governments. ONE Aviation went through two rounds of layoffs and was evicted from its Brunswick, Maine, hangar facility for failing to pay rent in 2017. The company’s bankruptcy exit plan was approved by the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware on Sept. 18, 2019.
ONE Aviation produced the Eclipse EA500 and EA550 jets along with developing the EA700 Canada jet and Kestrel turboprop. The company was formed in 2015 by a merger of Eclipse Aerospace and Kestrel Aircraft.
I’m curious to hear the numbers on this plane; it may be late to the market. Same for the Kestrel turboprop.