Pioneering Turboprop Tries To Adjust To Tough Market Conditions

You might say its yet another sign of the times -- but not a good one. Build a better mousetrap... watch the world beat a path to your door... watch economy tank and along with that goes the world's willingness to buy those better mousetraps... or really capable single-engine turboprops, for that matter. Quest Aircraft, manufacturers of a solidly build single engine turboprop that pulled the rug out from under a number of Cessna Caravan sales, is battling the ultimate foe... lack of bucks.

ANN has learned that 60 more people have been laid off, as of Monday, in the third of a series of layoffs as the company tightens its belts and works to ride out a tough economy and what has to be a lackluster order book. Quest's Head of Human Resources confirmed the layoffs but refused to go into much detail about the company's state other than to confirm that there are 'still orders on the books' and the company is doing nothing more than "what it has to do to last through this all." Idaho State officials are helping displaced workers as much as possible and the company did voice its regrets at the actions it was "forced" to undertake.

The bad news comes on the heels of the company's having fulfilled an impressive nine-ship order (amphibs, no less) for the US Fish and Wildlife Service... featured widely a few weeks ago at Oshkosh 2010.

The FWS praised the aircraft extensively, noting that, "These amphibious aircraft are vitally important to the Service’s mission to monitor and manage waterfowl and other migratory bird populations. In addition, the aircraft can be used to conduct aerial damage assessments due to environmental disasters such as hurricanes, and enable remote sensing and survey work in portions of the continent previously inaccessible using older, limited-range aircraft."

FMI: www.questaircraft.com