After 10 years of development and $100 million in investment, Cirrus is ready to ramp up production of its newest aircraft, the Vision Jet SF50.
The Vision Jet is what Cirrus calls a “personal jet.” It is designed to be flown by the owner. Many business jets, like the Embraer Phenom 100, require a pilot and co-pilot, but the 30-foot-long Vision, which is small for a jet, requires just one.
The Vision is the industry’s most modern, technologically-advanced general aviation jet and is supposed to be easy to fly for those with a pilot’s license, according to aircraft broker Ed Dahlberg, president of Emerald Aviation. Compared to direct competitors like the Cessna Mustang and the Phenom, which cost around $4 million, the Vision is a big draw, Dahlberg says.
“Cirrus created a big opportunity with the $2 million price point for the jet,” says Dahlberg.
Brothers Dale and Alan Klapmeier co-founded Cirrus in 1984 in their parents’ barn in Baraboo, Wisconsin. The brothers started the company to make a plane comfortable enough and safe enough so their wives would fly with them, says Dale Klapmeier. The Vision Jet is the culmination of that vision, he says.
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