Adam Aircraft is ramping up production of the A500 as the company has begun delivery of the centerline twin piston-engine aircraft, company executives said during the National Business Aviation Association this month in Orlando, Fla. At the same time, the Colorado-based airplane manufacturer rolled out a second A700 very light jet (VLJ) and is preparing to fly the plane before yearend.

Adam formally handed over the first A500, Serial Number 005, to a Colorado Springs business executive Nov. 7, about six months after the company first won provisional type certification of the aircraft. "This is great news for the firm," said Adam Chairman Rick Adam. "Adam Aircraft has moved from a startup company that makes experimental aircraft to an FAA-certified manufacturer that is delivering standard airworthiness aircraft."

The company recently secured from FAA Approved Production Inspection System (APIS) certification, enabling the company to accelerate production by inspecting its own aircraft under the FAA-approved system. Adam plans to ramp up production and deliver six A500s a month by next summer. Initial plans call for Adam to deliver Serial Number 006 this month and Serial Numbers 007 and 008 in December or early January.

Those aircraft are delivered under the provisional certification, which limits the altitude and does not cover night operations or flight under instrument flight rules. Adam hopes to achieve the second type certification approval from FAA in January, clearing the aircraft for night and IFR flight and raising the altitude ceiling to 25,000 feet. TC 2 also will cover pressurization, air conditioning, gear doors that also are used on the A700, and a weight expansion. A third type certification, covering the de-icing system, is expected to follow in the first quarter of 2006.

Adam created a Production Advisory Council to help the company as it moves into full-scale production. The council includes former Raytheon Aircraft executive and Sino Swearingen head Jack Braly, Don Van Burkleo, former vice president of quality control for Cessna, and Pat Wildenburg, former supply chain vice president with Delta Air Lines. Now that it has secured APIS approval, Adam hopes to achieve its production certificate in the first quarter of 2006.

Joe Walker, president and chief operating officer for Adam, said production "is ramping up nicely," as the number of work orders required to build each airplane declines and the completion dates accelerate. Adam has sold out the first year of production for the $1.2 million A500, and the orderbook has grown to 80 units. First available delivery is in early 2007, Walker said.

The company's overall orderbook nearly tripled in the past year. The A700 VLJ orderbook includes sales of 57 units to owner-operators and 225 units for fleet operators. The first available delivery position for the A700, priced at $2.25 million, is in the first quarter of 2008, Walker said, noting a "tremendous amount of demand in the air taxi market."

The company continues to press ahead with its certification effort on the A700 with the rollout of S/N 002. A derivative of the A500, the A700 is expected to win certification and enter service by late 2006. Walker believes the certification process will move more quickly for the company's second airplane, thanks in part to the work already accomplished on the A500 (BA, Aug. 8/56). He noted the significant commonality between the two aircraft, which will share the same production line.

Adam is using that commonality to guarantee insurance for owner operators of the A700. Under a step-up program the company is employing, Adam is guaranteeing that operators who meet certain experience requirements, including 200 hours in an A500, will be able to obtain insurance for an A700.

Adam also has crafted an "Adam Support Aircraft Program," or ASAP, for both aircraft. ASAP includes a Tip-to-Tail guaranteed direct operating cost program developed in partnership with JSSI. The Tip-to-Tail program covers just about all operating costs except for fuel, Adam executives said. This includes scheduled and unscheduled maintenance, and consumables such as brakes, tires and light bulbs. In addition, Adam has dedicated an A500, S/N 002, to customer support to provide aircraft-on-ground assistance to customers. Adam has priced the ASAP program for A500 owners at $250 per hour for three years or 750 hours. Adam also will offer the program to A700 owners at a cost of $350 per hour for three years or 750 hours.