All Things Old May Be New Again?
Its been a long tough road for the folks of Quartz Mountain Aerospace in their quest to bring a fabled airframe back to life. Following years of sometimes-choppy operations, a small Altus, OK-based planemaker might finally be heading for smoother skies. Quartz Mountain Aerospace recently earned a significant milestone on its way towards having its name associated with the likes of Cessna, or Mooney: the company earned its first airworthiness certificate from the FAA.
Aero-TV caught up with QMA at the 2008 AOPA Fly-In to see an example of their handiwork. Formerly known as Luscombe Aircraft Corp., the company says the Model 11E -- which will be used primarily as a trainer -- is an adaptation of the Luscombe Model 11A Sedan, introduced in 1946. The new model is distinguished by superior in-flight and landing stability over the tailwheel-equipped Sedan.
Like with innumerable other upstart planemakers, QMA's trip to this point hasn't been an easy one. As ANN reported in June 2007, Quartz Mountain attributed the need for layoffs (since rescinded) to delays in FAA inspections related to earning production certification, and various parts, training, and supply issues. With the ability to now produce sell its Luscombe 11E en masse, Quartz Mountain's 110,000-square-foot work floor -- eerily quiet just a year ago -- is now filled with the noises of a busy production facility.
Quartz Mountain has also taken recent steps to show it's serious about playing in the big leagues. As ANN reported last April, QMA announced it will be the first to offer Garmin's G950 glass-panel avionics suite.
Let's Take A Look At A NEW Classic, The Luscombe 11E, With Aero-TV
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