Hamburg/Oshkosh, July 26, 2006 - The German company Thielert Aircraft Engines GmbH, a subsidiary of the public listed corporation Thielert AG, today announced at EAA AirVenture in Oshkosh the signing of a deal with a new fleet customer. The aircraft of the most prestigious North American flying school "American Flyers" are being equipped with immediate effect with the state-of-the-art Centurion jet fuel piston engines. American Flyers has over 55 training aircraft. It is initially planning to convert all aircraft of the type Cessna 172. The first US Cessna 172 equipped with Centurion 1.7 jet fuel engine is displayed in Oshkosh on booth #167/168 (Superior/Thielert).
Frank Thielert, Managing Director of Thielert Aircraft Engines GmbH, presented the certificate in person on July 26, 2006 and symbolically a Centurion glass cube to American Flyers proprietors Clark McCormack, President and David Huser and Rick Freidinger, Vice-Presidents. "We are proud to have this opportunity to equip one of the best and largest flying schools in North America with our Centurion jet fuel engines," said Frank Thielert. "With the Centurion engines, American Flyers is deliberately opting for a fuel-efficient and easy-to-operate diesel engine that runs on jet fuel," continued Thielert.
American Flyers can lay claim to some 67 years of experience in the training of pilots. It employs 350 persons at 13 sites, who have more than 250,000 flying hours' experience. To date, over 100,000 pilots have been trained by American Flyers and have received their FAA certificate.
American Flyer has 55 training aircraft of the type Cessna 172, which can be converted with the Centurion jet fuel engines. Epic Aviation, Inc., located in New Smyrna Beach, FL, a distributor for Thielert engines for Central and South America partnered with Thielert and American Flyers on the sale and installation of the first conversion displayed at Oshkosh.
Thielert is already successfully marketing its Centurion engines in two output classes to various flying schools right across Europe, Africa and China. American Flyers is the first flying school in North America. The FAA type certification for the installation of the Centurion 1.7 in the model series of the Cessna 172 was awarded as far back as January 31, 2005.
Further FAA type certifications for the Robin DR 400 and Diamond DA40 will be awarded before the end of the year. The FAA type certification for the installation of the powerful 350 hp Centurion 4.0 in the Cessna 206, 340,414 and 421 is planned for the coming year. "This will enable the students of the flying school to experience the feeling of flying a jet from the outset," says Thielert.
About Thielert AG and Superior Air Parts, Inc.
The Thielert group, founded in 1989, is the world's leading provider of certified kerosene/diesel jet fuel piston aircraft engines for General Aviation. As a certified development, production and maintenance company to the aviation industry, Thielert became the world's first company to obtain certification for a jet fuel piston engine. The jet fuel engines of the CENTURION series reduce direct flying costs by up to 60 percent compared with conventional piston aircraft engines. For more than sixteen years, the company has also been developing and manufacturing components for high-performance engines in addition to digital engine control systems. For automotive engineering, defense technology and the aviation industry, it develops manufacturing strategies for engine components and complete engine adaptations. For the 2005 business year, Thielert recorded consolidated net sales of 37.6 million euros (2004: 24.2 million euros) and an EBITDA of 16.1 million euros (2004: 11.3 million euros). Thielert AG has been listed in the Prime Standard of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange since 17 November 2005. After a successful development in the first half year the company was admitted to the SDAX index on 1 March 2006. At its German sites in Lichtenstein/Saxony and Hamburg, the company employs more than 220 persons.
Superior Air Parts, Inc. was founded in 1967 and was certificated as a manufacturer of aviation components (PMA – Parts Manufacturer Approval). The company's headquarters are located in Coppell near Dallas, Texas, USA. Superior has 53 employees and a fully developed sales and service network in the USA. Turnover in 2005 totalled 25.3 million US dollars. The gross margin in the same year was 28.2 percent (according to US GAAP).
