WACO Aircraft Corporation has abruptly ceased all aircraft production and maintenance services at its Battle Creek, Michigan facility, in a move that has shocked the GA community.
According to AvWeb, who broke the story, employees left work as usual on Tuesday and shortly afterwards received an email instructing them not to return. A sign posted on the factory door confirmed the closure, stating: "After exhausting every possible path to keep our operations running, ownership has made the painful decision to cease aircraft production and maintenance services in the U.S., effective immediately."
The closure affects around 40 to 60 employees, with some retained to manage the wind-down. More information is expected from ownership later this week.
WACO had exhibited at Sun 'n Fun in Florida just weeks ago and had a full events calendar that included planned appearances in Brazil in May, the American WACO Club Fly-In in Ohio in June, and EAA AirVenture at Oshkosh in July.
WACO was acquired by Germany's Dimor Group in 2018 and produced handcrafted biplanes based on 1920s designs, primarily the YMF-5 and Great Lakes models, alongside a light sport version of the Junkers A50 monoplane. The company described itself as "the leader in building handcrafted, open-cockpit aircraft that provide the ultimate sense of adventure." Aircraft were custom-built and priced at around USD $600,000, a figure that some industry observers have pointed to as a key challenge in sustaining the business in a niche market.
The WACO name has a long history in American aviation. The original Waco Aircraft Company was founded in 1920 and became one of the most prolific light aircraft manufacturers of the interwar period, building more than 100 different models before ceasing operations in 1947. The current iteration of the company, initially known as WACO Classic Aircraft, began building modernised versions of the YMF-5 in 1986, taking advantage of the original type certificates, which had passed into the public domain.
The WACO closure is the second significant loss for the GA kit and niche aircraft market in as many months. In late March, Sonex Aircraft, the Oshkosh, Wisconsin-based kit manufacturer behind the Sonex, Sonerai and SubSonex jet, announced it was closing its doors immediately, citing a drop in sales, bank pressure and competition from used aircraft on the second-hand market. Around 30 Sonex aircraft are currently on the Australian civil register. As reported by Australian Flying, Schaible acknowledged that outstanding kit orders were unlikely to be fulfilled.