FAA Certification Comes After 18-Month Effort

When they said "imminent," they meant it! Aspen Avionics alerted ANN Friday evening the company has just been granted Technical Standard Order (TSO) Authorization for the Evolution Pilot and Pro Primary Flight Displays (PFDs) from the FAA. With certification and production authority in hand, Aspen will begin shipping EFD1000 PFD systems on March 31, as planned.

Announced eight months ago at EAA AirVenture in Oshkosh, Aspen bills its Evolution Flight Display system is an affordable glass cockpit solution for general aviation aircraft. With prices starting under $6,000, the modular and upgradeable Evolution system breaks the price barrier and makes the safety benefits of the most advanced glass cockpit technologies finally accessible to the vast majority of the GA aircraft fleet.

"This certification is a major achievement for Aspen Avionics, and a testament to the drive, strength and experience of our people," said Aspen’s President and CEO John Uczekaj. "It’s remarkable how much a small, focused team can accomplish in short order. Aspen is living proof that entrepreneurship is alive and well in the aviation industry."

Certification of the Evolution Flight Display is the second TSO Aspen Avionics has received. The company’s innovative AT300 Hazard Awareness Display received certification in November 2005. The certification process for the EFD1000 PFD took approximately 18 months to complete.

"It’s been a pleasure working with the FAA on this project," said Peter Lyons, Aspen Avionics Co-Founder and VP of Product Management, who led the company’s certification effort. "The FAA recognized early in the process the potential safety benefits that affordable retrofit EFIS systems can offer the general aviation (GA) fleet, and have been very supportive of our efforts."

Aspen says customer interest in the Evolution has been strong. The company reported sales of over $1.5 million of the units in the first week after the product’s launch.

"This is the right product, at the right time, for the right price, and is a joy to fly" said Doug Cayne, Aspen’s VP of Marketing. "Our order book has continued to swell as we’ve made progress towards certification, and now we can start delivering one of the most eagerly anticipated products in recent avionics history," said Cayne.

Aspen has spent the past nine months building a network of top avionics dealers to sell and support the EFD1000, and now has nearly 300 authorized avionics dealers ready to begin installations of the Evolution system in April.

"With TSO and production authorization in hand, Aspen is rapidly ramping up production to meet demand," said Uczekaj. "With our new manufacturing facility in Albuquerque, top-notch manufacturing talent, and an experienced Customer Support team, we are confident that we will be able to meet the market’s enthusiastic response to the Evolution Flight Display."

FMI: www.aspenavionics.com