(Engines by Williams)

Never one to be set back by a setback, Eclipse's resilient CEO, Vern Raburn, changed the engine spec on his little 'personal jet.' Instead of the just-for-Eclipse Williams 22-series engines, he's now gone with P&W.

The question of what to do with all those little Williams powerplants (kept on secret racks, in a bunker six stories below the Eclipse plant in Albuquerque) remained, though -- and so Vern had an idea: he'd introduce the Eclipse Glamour Glider!

A high-speed design, more reminiscent of a Falconjet rather than a U-2, the EGG would occasionally be self-launching, achieving FL300 or so, before the power would shut off, more-or-less automatically. From that time, the EGG could pick a landing spot, generally within the machine's designed gliding range (about 40 miles, from FL300; less for lower altitudes).

"The really cool part," Raburn said, "is that we can produce these birds for comparatively low bucks, and they'll all be registered in the 'Experimental' category. That will save owners a bundle on maintenance. Additionally, since the engines will be run for only a few minutes at a time, the 100 hour TBO really represents a good value." He added, "not to mention the increased baggage capacity, since most of the fuel tanks have now been fitted with baggage doors."

There's one other thing: the machine will be virtually indistinguishable from the real Eclipse jet (except for the "EXPERIMENTAL" placards and a few detail changes, like the engines' location). That means that owners will get that 'special jet treatment' at non-home-base FBOs, as they take on 30 gallons of Jet-A for that next flight.

For the enviro-tyrants living near airports, there's the added bonus: landings will be quite silent (as the screams of PAX are well-isolated from those outside the airplane).

FMI: www.eclipse-no-way-com