FLUG REVUE January 2005: 328 Jet again in production

January 2005

100TH DORNIER 328JET COMPLETED

By Patrick Hoeveler

Some subdued celebrating is called for: over two years after production ceased with the insolvency of Fairchild Dornier in April 2002, the 328Jet programme stands before new milestones. The 100th aircraft should have been completed shortly after this issue of FLUG REVUE went to press. This is one of the five as yet incomplete aircraft taken over by AvCraft in the aftermath of the insolvency. Following completion with the interior the twinjet, an Envoy 3 corporate variant, is bound for the UK business jet charter carrier, Club328 (formerly Bookajet), which is also purchasing another three of the original five aircraft. The fifth and last aircraft to undergo completion will be delivered to Aero Dienst in Nuremberg in March.

Dornier 328Jet

At the same time, preparations for the resumption of series production are in full swing. Wolfgang Walter, Managing Director of AvCraft in Oberpfaffenhofen and an ex-employee of Dornier of many years' standing, has thus achieved an important point: “Support was always important for AvCraft. But our top goal was to get production back under way. We never had the mentality of a company that has to be wound up.”

Production of the wings is poised to commence in Oberpfaffenhofen at the beginning of December (see FR 6/04). Installation of the tooling, which has already been measured out by laser, is in the final phase. At present the technicians are installing the jigs for fuelling and defuelling the wing tanks. Collaboration with the company EDAG Engineering + Design AG from Fulda, which is supplying the tooling and had previously been active primarily in the automobile industry, has “worked out really well,” as Walter explained in an interview with FLUG REVUE.

“Now that we have solved the wing problem, the biggest hurdle is behind us,” he says. “But the aircraft will only be finished when all parts are in it.” Yet not all the supplier contracts have been wrapped up. “The goal of getting all the old Fairchild Dornier suppliers back on board has not been entirely successful.” The major partners remain the same, as otherwise a relaunch would not have been feasible. First of all a contract had to be signed with Pratt & Whitney Canada since, without engines, there would have been little prospect of attracting any other companies. Then AvCraft was able to reach a general agreement with Aermacchi about taking over fuselages that were already partially complete, and detailed negotiations over the supply of new fuselages from Italy are still under way. Contrary to earlier plans, the first new aircraft will not now be finished until June. Whether this will be an airliner or a corporate version is still open.

Even though most of the suppliers have taken the opportunity of fresh negotiations to put up their prices, Walter plans to stick to the previous list price of $11.5 million for a finished airliner, at least for the time being. The existing type certificate will be valid for the new aircraft. The only changes relate to improved reliability. Thus, for example, the engineers have solved problems with the power supply through the DC generator. Certification for steep approaches by the 328Jet to London City airport is currently sitting on the desk of EASA. There are also plans for a take-off mode with reduced power under suitable temperature and altitude conditions, so as to lengthen the service life of the engines. US operator Atlantic Coast Airlines had reported problems with the PW306B, which Pratt & Whitney Canada plans to resolve with an improved cooling system for the compressor.

Although the market potential for 30-seater aircraft has had to be revised downwards in the light of recent forecasts, from up to 1200 over the next six to seven years to only 300 units, Walter remains optimistic. At the NBAA business aviation convention they had been taken by surprise by the high degree of interest shown by some American companies. And as for the airline market, he said, an airline from Central Europe seemed interested in a possible purchase. At present AvCraft has an order backlog of 20 aircraft according to Walter, of which 15 are for Hainan and five for Club328. In 2005, production of 328Jets is now expected to total about twelve instead of the original 18 planned. On the other hand, one potential customer is Sun Air of Denmark, which will have a total of eight 328 turboprops in service by April and might perhaps switch to jets. Meanwhile, Cirrus Aviation of Saarbrücken now operates two 328Jets, one of which will from January be deployed on scheduled services between Berne and Berlin and between Berne and Vienna that it has taken over from Intersky. According to the company, it has no plans for any more jets at present.

AvCraft is also heavily involved in the market for special variants. “It is important to gain additional pillars of support,” Walter says. After the sale of a second-hand 328 turboprop to Australia for search and rescue, another seven aircraft could follow. It seems that there are a sufficient number of turboprops available. Withdrawal of the type from service by the American carrier, PSA Airlines, has meant that about 37 aircraft were in storage in October 2004.

For the special purpose aircraft, the designers are adding the auxiliary fuel tanks of the business jet variant to the turboprop version. However, the company is reluctant to publish figures for the higher take-off weight and range. But it is looking for a new manufacturer of the 1,750 litre tanks, as MAN has pulled out from this area.

On the other hand, the 428Jet also acquired from the insolvent Fairchild Dornier remains on ice. Before this can be revived, Wolfgang Walter has to overcome the scepticism prevalent in many quarters by demonstrating that production of the 328Jet is a success. He does not want to commit the “mistake of the old company of selling something that it did not have.”

From page 32 of FLUG REVUE 1/2005

Last updated 12 December 2004

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