Hoping For Major Capital Infusion This Month

Tiger Aircraft has confirmed to ANN that eight staffers were given pink-slips last Friday. Despite what Tiger Boss Gene Criss described as a "pretty solid" order book, nearly a third of the current staff was laid off while the company awaits what is expected to be a major capital infusion later this month. This new financing prgram may also establish the unnamed party as a possible new majority partner in the company.

Despite the negative tone of the announcement, Criss sounds upbeat about the future of the company. "The G1000 Tigers are selling well and new dealers are placing a number of orders... Our order book has rarely looked better."

Criss describes the current move as a cash conservation issue, in preparation for the aforementioned capital infusion. Construction continues unabated on the current product line with the 20 staffers now left at the company. 

Tiger announced the certification of the G1000-equipped tiger at Oshkosh 2005. The twin-screen system features 10.4-inch glass displays for the PFD and MFD, both of which include 1024 x 768 resolution and wide-angle viewing, even in bright sunlight. Covering the navigation functions, the system is WAAS-capable; it contains IFR GPS; and it has VHF/ILS with VHF output of 16 watts.

There is a built-in attitude and heading reference system (AHRS), traffic information service (TIS), and terrain proximity alerting and a Mode S transponder. Crisp digital audio comes courtesy of the GIA 63 dual integrated radio system that runs through the GMA 1347 digital audio control panel.

The upgraded Tiger, featuring the G1000 panel, carries a price of $274,500.

FMI: www.tigeraircraft.com