Committee on Foreign Investment Finds A5 has Little Chance for Conversion As Military Aircraft

The Committee on Foreign Investment in the US has tendered its verdict on the Icon Aircraft deal, finding that the misgivings held by domestic investors were unfounded and things may continue on as they have been at the company -- such as that is. 

The scrutiny came as a result of an Icon investor group's wariness surrounding the sudden funding of the state-owned Shanghai Pudong Science and Technology Investment Company into the manufacturer. Their concerns were that nearly half of Icon shares were purchased less so for the chance to invest in a young, up and coming aircraft, and more for the inherent utility of a lightweight, carbon-bodied seaplane as the basis of future weapon systems. The committee said that such worries were unfounded and that there were no unresolved national security concerns. Even the 47% Chinese stake in the company doesn't seem to matter, since their belief is that nothing in the A5 could be converted into military use. 

From here on out, little will change for the company, aside from the possibility of some friction between investors after willingly bringing some government snooping into their work. Icon will continue to produce the A5 at a level far less than was promised some time ago, with alleged plans to increase their operations, sales, and marketing as they head into the spring and summer seasons - their peak sales months-- which is not saying much when you look at the most recent stats. Recent additions to the product line have seen a swathe of new color palettes, graphics, and a promised new A5 Certified Edition, which may offer a type certified, Primary Category aircraft that could prove easier to import and fly abroad. 

FMI: www.iconaircraft.com