ICON Aircraft Constructs and Flies First Production A5

LOS ANGELES, July 28, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Last night at EAA AirVenture in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, ICON Aircraft unveiled the first production A5, an aircraft the company refers to as Engineering Serial Number 1 (ESN-1). This is the first A5 built from the production design, with production tooling, and using production methods and components. ESN-1 was built over a five-month period, from January to June of 2014, and successfully completed its first flight on 7 July 2014 in Tehachapi, California. This aircraft is one of three that will be used to verify performance and complete FAA approval prior to the start of customer deliveries in May of 2015.

"This is one of the most significant milestones to date for ICON. It represents the culmination of years of research, design, engineering, and manufacturing dedication by an outstanding team," said ICON Aircraft Founder and CEO Kirk Hawkins. "The A5 is no longer a prototype or concept aircraft; it's a sophisticated, production-ready, consumer-focused aircraft. The entire ICON team is pouring its heart and soul into bringing the A5 to our customers, and it shows in the truly exceptional execution of the product. I couldn't be prouder."

"The A5's development has been a massive undertaking," said ICON VP of Engineering and CTO Matthew Gionta. "The amount of intellectual horsepower and years of relentless commitment that has gone into this aircraft is impressive. The ICON team worked tirelessly to make the A5 a reality; it is difficult to convey the magnitude of work involved to bring a new aircraft to market, much less one balancing all the demanding design requirements of the A5. Before we could even begin designing the aircraft's 1600-plus unique components, the team spent thousands of hours designing, building, testing, and iterating the proof of concept aircraft to get it right. Only then could we design the production parts, the tools to manufacture them, and work with the 100 or so suppliers that are contributing components to the A5," explained Gionta. "With ESN-1 complete and ESN-2 under construction, we are now looking toward FAA approval, after which we will begin customer deliveries. I can't wait for our customers to finally experience the finished product."

ESN-1 was built at ICON's facility in Tehachapi, California, and made its first flight from the Tehachapi Municipal Airport earlier this month. "ESN-1 performed very well on its first flight," said ICON Test Pilot and Lead Aero Engineer Jon Karkow, who was at the controls for the flight. "Its flight characteristics are similar to the proof of concept aircraft, which logged over 700 flights, with the same responsive character and control harmony. The hard work of the engineering and production teams is very clear."

A second production prototype, ESN-2, is currently under construction and is scheduled for completion and structural testing this fall. The first three aircraft built will support the FAA approval process, and the third aircraft will be delivered to the first customer after that process is complete.

To celebrate EAA AirVenture and the completion of ESN-1, ICON is auctioning one of the early ICON 100 production positions, serial number 030, which is scheduled for delivery in early 2016. The company will donate a portion of the proceeds to the Veterans Airlift Command, a non-profit charity that provides free air transportation to post 9/11 combat wounded and their families through a national network of volunteer aircraft, owners, and pilots. For more information about the auction, visit this link: www.A5Auction.com.

ICON recently announced that it would begin operating in its new 140,000-square-foot facility in Vacaville, California, in early 2015. The company is currently readying the factory and offices to begin full-scale manufacturing. Once at full production rates, the factory will be capable of producing more than 500 aircraft per year.

ICON produced a video that highlights the journey to ESN-1's first flight: www.iconaircraft.com/esn1 

For more information, visit www.iconaircraft.com.

ABOUT ICON AIRCRAFT:
ICON Aircraft is a consumer sport plane manufacturer founded in response to the new sport flying category created by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in 2004. ICON's first plane is the A5, an amphibious sport aircraft that fuses outstanding aeronautical engineering with world-class product design. It has won some of the world's most prestigious design awards and has inspired a global following. The company has received more than 1000 order deposits and has manufactured the first production aircraft. ICON Aircraft's facilities are in Southern California, a hotbed for automotive design and aerospace engineering.

ABOUT FAA LIGHT SPORT AIRCRAFT & SPORT PILOT CLASSIFICATIONS:
In 2004, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) created a new classification of easy-to-fly and affordable two-person airplanes called Light Sport Aircraft. These airplanes enable a new classification of Sport Pilots to fly in lower-altitude, uncongested airspace, during the daytime, and in good weather. The Sport Pilot License focuses on the fundamentals of flying and requires a minimum of 20 hours of in-flight training, undercutting the time and cost of a traditional Private Pilot License by about 50%. The Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) has described these new rules as "the biggest change in aviation in 50 years."

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SOURCE ICON Aircraft