Bill
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Anthony said:
Mmmm, more like an Extra 300 to maybe an aerobatic Bonanza.
Tiger Aircraft has halted production??
- Thread starter poadeleted3
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Mmmm, more like an Extra 300 to maybe an aerobatic Bonanza.
poadeleted20
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While Tom's dream is nice, it is just wishful thinking. They only thing anyone can produce in the limited quantity demanded at the sub-100K price is a light sport machine built in Eastern Europe. The fact that all the 180-200HP fixed gear singles currently in production are nearly the same price (when comparably equipped) suggests that this is what it costs to build such a plane. If someone could build a competitive one for $145K, they'd be doing it and stealing the market.
If we were back in the 70's, with tens of thousands of light planes rolling off the line each year, the economies of scale would be different. However, the demand just isn't there, and the overhead (particularly the liability insurance premiums for the production "tail") remains the same. Divide the overhead by 1/10 the number of production units, and the cost per unit skyrockets.
Note that $145K was about the price Cirrus and Cessna originally posted on the SR20 and 172, and after folks started lining up to buy them at that price, it turned out to be lowballed in the extreme, and the price went up 50-65%. Tiger stunned the market when they posted a price of $214K when they broke ground for the factory back in 1999; everyone said "they'll never sell them at that price." TA said, "That's what it will cost to build them profitably," and they were right -- their base price has gone up only about 15% since then. Guess there's no points for accuracy and honesty in marketing.
If we were back in the 70's, with tens of thousands of light planes rolling off the line each year, the economies of scale would be different. However, the demand just isn't there, and the overhead (particularly the liability insurance premiums for the production "tail") remains the same. Divide the overhead by 1/10 the number of production units, and the cost per unit skyrockets.
Note that $145K was about the price Cirrus and Cessna originally posted on the SR20 and 172, and after folks started lining up to buy them at that price, it turned out to be lowballed in the extreme, and the price went up 50-65%. Tiger stunned the market when they posted a price of $214K when they broke ground for the factory back in 1999; everyone said "they'll never sell them at that price." TA said, "That's what it will cost to build them profitably," and they were right -- their base price has gone up only about 15% since then. Guess there's no points for accuracy and honesty in marketing.
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gismo
Touchdown! Greaser!
SkyHog said:
Nobody is making a killing building GA airplanes. IMO the biggest problem is that they are too labor intensive to build at an affordable price. That could change if the production rates went back to a few thousand per month, but I don't see that happening.
Bill
Touchdown! Greaser!
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Anthony said:
More like I know
