Avocet ProJet
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The Avocet ProJet was a Very Light Jet (VLJ) introduced by Avocet Aircraft, a Westport, CT., based company founded by former investment bankers Carey Robinson Wolchok and Andrew Chao and Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI), the largest industrial company in the State of Israel. The Avocet ProJet was announced at the 2003 NBAA, and was generally considered one of the best-engineered of the VLJs, due to its performance characteristics and cabin layout.
The ProJet was planned as a six-seat, twin-engine turbofan jet. Capable of takeoffs and landings in as little as 3,000 feet, it had been designed by Israeli engineers at IAI's Commercial Aircraft Group to fly at an airspeed of 365 knots (420 mph) up to an altitude of 41,000 feet and a maximum cruising range of 1,200 nautical (1,375 statute) miles.
Due to Israel Aircraft Industries's long history of corporate jet development, starting with the Westwind business jet of the 1970s, up to the modern Gulfstream G200, most industry analysts expected the ProJet to be a contender in the race to develop the first Very Light Jet. The ProJet had a long list of well-known supporters and investors, including football legend Joe Montana1, who was a member of Avocet's board of directors and one of the first customers of the ProJet. Other Avocet board members included Jacob Frenkel, the former Bank of Israel Governor, Gil Amelio, the Former Chairman and CEO of Apple Computer, General Amnon Shahak, the former Chief of Staff of the Israel Defense Forces and Israel's Minister of Transportation, and Joe Nelson, a former NASA Astronaut and the Chairman of the National Science Center. Avocet was headed by David Tait, OBE, the former head of Virgin Atlantic Airways, in the role of Chief Executive Officer, and Mark Biagetti, a senior executive from Pratt & Whitney and McDonnell Douglas, as Chief Operating Officer. The Company announced orders for more than 100 aircraft at the NBAA 2003 Annual Conference in Orlando, Florida, and expected first flight in 2005.2,
The ProJet was the third Very Light Jet announced in the aviation industry, after the Eclipse 500 and the Cessna Mustang. The ProJet's price of approximately $2 million and direct operating costs projected to be less than $1.00 a mile, positioned the aircraft as a direct competitor to the Cessna Mustang, with a larger cabin cross section and more external baggage room, at a significant discount to the Cessna Mustang list price.
In 2005, the Avocet ProJet development project stalled due to a corporate decision at Israel Aircraft Industries to seek additional partners for the program. Industry sources cited concerns by IAI executives of potential product support problems if IAI and Avocet introduced the Jet into the market without a product support partner. Rumors in the industry had Avocet and IAI collaborating with Raytheon Aircraft and Embraer on the program, but by December of 2005, the Avocet program was officially cancelled and all depost holders were provided with their deposits returned.
Shortly after the Avocet program stalled, Embraer introduced its VLJ, the Phenom 100, an aircraft which bore a striking resemblance to the Avocet ProJet, and some analysts speculated that the design for the Phenom had been appropriated by Embraer.3
1Sports Illustrated Magazine, July 2004
2 Aviation International News, September 2003
3Aviation International News, "Avocet Is Latest VLJ Casulty"
