A very cheery Bing Lantis (bottom, right) held court in Oshkosh (WI) on Tuesday and reported that Lancair production was increasing steadily... as were sales.

Now, more than six months since restarting production, the Lancair Company reports that its ramp up continues to pick up steam. “We’re at one Columbia every four days right now and will pick that up to one aircraft every three days by mid-fourth quarter,” said Lancair Vice President Ron Wright.

According to Wright, the entire process has been smoother than he ever could have dreamed and much of the credit goes to their component suppliers.

“It’s not as easy as you might think to restart a production line of our scale or complexity,” Wright said. “There are a lot of outside entities supplying components for our aircraft and they’ve responded wonderfully to the demands we’ve placed on them. We’re very pleased with the support and enthusiasm we’ve seen from our suppliers.”

Another component of Lancair’s successful production ramp up is new composite shop director Joe Hafenrichter who recently joined The Lancair Company after a stint on Boeing’s Joint Strike Fighter program. Hafenrichter brings key experience in composites and lean manufacturing to what Wright terms the “heart” of the production process.

“The composite shop is the key to controlling the pace of aircraft production” continued Wright. “Joe is managing every aspect of our composites manufacturing, from integrating our outside suppliers into our overall supply chain to making sure our own, in-house composites shop operates optimally.” The Lancair Company also recently completed a study of their composites manufacturing staffing and processes and is making modifications that will facilitate rapid growth in the future.

“We’ve been making significant capital investments in the organization that will enable us to continue to produce aircraft rapidly, cost-efficiently and to a very high level of quality,” said Lancair President Bing Lantis. “Our production ramp up is on or a little ahead of schedule in all areas. We’re right where we want to be.”

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