It's happened! The first production version of the promising -- but oft-delayed -- Sino Swearingen SJ30-2 has been delivered to its first customer. Douglas Jaffe will base his aircraft at the San Antonio International Airport, where it will fly for his company, JetTran International.

Two of Jaffe's pilots are now undergoing pilot training at SSAC's FAA approved Pilot Center.

"This is a monumental day in the history of SSAC, and marks the beginning of a brand new phase of our company," said Dr. Ching-Chiang Kuo, Chairman and CEO of SSAC. "We have officially joined a very select group of general aviation companies who have designed, manufactured, delivered and serviced a new business jet. We are now open for business and can turn our full attention to our customers."

"This has been an interesting journey so far, and the future looks very exciting," the Chairman added.

The name of the plane, SJ30, has some historical significance. The two initials in the name are derived from "Swearingen" and "Jaffe", who were the early promoters of the program. Mr. Jaffe was one of the primary investors in the beginning of the program, and Mr. Swearingen was the creator and chief designer of the SJ30.

Also, the number "30" in the name represents the number of plane designs pioneered by Ed Swearingen.

"I am extremely excited about taking delivery of the first SJ30 out of the factory," Jaffe told ANN. "This is one of those special days in aviation history that I am both proud and honored to be a part of. This is the first new plane from a startup company in 42 years, and the design has stood the test of time. There is still no other jet that compares to the performance of the SJ30. I hope it is the first of many thousands of aircraft produced by the SSAC organization."

The SJ30 business jet is a high performance twinjet aircraft with a range of over 2,500 nautical miles, and the highest cruise speed in the light jet industry of Mach .83 (560 mph). The aircraft is certified for single pilot operation up to 49,000 feet, and maintains a sea-level cabin of 12 psi through 41,000 ft.

SSAC aims to produce a family of cost-efficient, high performance business jets.

FMI: www.sj30jet.com