With a new corporate parent, Arizona-based Commuter Air Technology is exploring adapting its well-received modification kits that it developed for the King Air for use on other aircraft. Founded in 1986 to transform the King Air 200 into a commuter aircraft, Commuter Air Technology was sold late last year to...
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With a new corporate parent, Arizona-based Commuter Air Technology is exploring adapting its well-received modification kits that it developed for the King Air for use on other aircraft.
Founded in 1986 to transform the King Air 200 into a commuter aircraft, Commuter Air Technology was sold late last year to an Oklahoma City-based investment group. Acorn Growth Equities in conjunction with Texas-based Marco Capital Group and Oklahoma-based Arvest Bank paid an undisclosed sum for the company.
Acorn president Rick Nagel has been named the interim president at Commuter. The former president, Sharon Thuell, remains with the company as the director of business development.
The company's modification kit, dubbed CATPASS (Commuter Air Technology Passenger and Safety Systems), is designed to make the King Air safer and more reliable. "They have a lot of modifications that increase the utility of the plane," Nagel told Regional Aviation News. The company has delivered more than 100 CATPASS 250 kits, which include 18 enhancements ranging from cargo pods, to new interiors, to engine improvements and to heavier tires.
With a proven record of taking "good airplanes and making them do new things, we want to be involved in that beyond the King Air with other smaller platforms. We will look for other and bigger opportunities," Nagel said.
Commuter adapted its first King Air for Mesa Airlines [MESA]. While the U.S. regional market is now flying regional jets or larger turboprops, Nagel said there is still a worldwide market for the modified King Air. The plane is being sold to operators in Central and South America, Africa and Asia. The plane is popular for island hopping either as a commuter or a charter aircraft. Some have been put in place as corporate shuttles, he added.
The bulk of the modifications have been for the King Air 200, but the company has modification kits available for other King aircraft. Nagel said Commuter's modification package for the King 300 was recently approved. The first modified King 300 was recently sold to a Japanese operator.
"We would like to do more for the King Air market. We are evaluating current market needs that owners have articulated to us to increase the capacity and usability to make the King Air a more valuable aircraft," Nagel said.
Admitting that the company may have been conservatively managed for the last several years, Nagel said Commuter would continue to research and develop products to expand its offerings to the general aviation, commuter and corporate charter markets. It is establishing a financing program for one-stop service for those buying a kit.
While Commuter got its start adapting the King Air for commercial passenger use, it has developed modifications to adapt the King Air 200 for use in special missions for the military. Its ability to operate in inaccessible areas and to stay aloft for up to nine hours makes it a high-demand aircraft for surveillance use, he said.
It is Commuter's military adaptations that caught Acorn's eye, Nagel said. Acorn, which now has eight companies in its investment portfolio, specializes in defense and aerospace firms.
"With the war on terrorism, the military is looking for good stable platforms. With difficult terrain and makeshift facilities, the military cannot fly big jets in and out."
The U.S. military, as well as its allies in Latin America, Asia and Africa, now fly the Commuter-adapted planes.
Commuter teams with a prime contractor who bids for special mission aircraft. Commuter then supervises the work of eight other subcontractors.
A major focus of the new owners will be to promote Commuter to develop more kits for small aircraft modifications that can be used in special missions. Nagel noted that the military is not building new aircraft for these special missions, but adapting older airplanes. "There are emerging opportunities and this is a niche we think we can fill," Nagel said.
>>Rick Nagel, Acorn, 405-737-2676; Commuter Air Technology, 480-998-1235.<<
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