Sport-Jet Suffers Crash in Flight Testing

COLORADO SPRINGS, COLORADO – During takeoff for flight number 25 in the Sport-jet flight test program, the aircraft suffered an uncommanded roll at low altitude, possibly induced by wake turbulence or weather phenomenon such as a microburst. The airplane was piloted by James Stewart, a retired military F-16 pilot. John Welty, an A&P mechanic, accompanied Stewart in the test flight. Both men were taken to the hospital as a precaution; both were released.

"Test pilots Stewart and Ron McElroy have accumulated 25 hours of successful flight testing," reported company president Bob Bornhofen. "Sport-Jet has explored the majority of its flight envelope without problems," he added. The new single engine jet has flown to its cruise altitude of 25,000 feet and speeds approaching 300 knots. Stewart and McElroy report superb performance with excellent handling qualities.

The Colorado Springs area, where Sport-Jet was completing its flight test regimen, experienced some unusual weather activities on the day of the flight.

On takeoff at approximately 9:30 a.m. on June 22, 2006, eyewitnesses report Sport-Jet rolled rapidly 90 degrees at about 30 feet of altitude. A wingtip struck the ground, cart wheeling the Sport-Jet onto its tail, which suffered major damage. While a good portion of the aircraft was substantially damaged, the carbon roll- cage style designed fuselage of Sport-jet provided significant protection for its occupants and according to an insurance expert was instrumental in minimizing the injuries.

While further investigating the incident, Excel-Jet has suspended work and indicated the company will report later on continued development of the project. Sport-Jet planned to make its official public debut at EAA’s AirVenture Oshkosh, which had just been confirmed with EAA officials the day before the incident.

Excel-Jet's new Sport-Jet is a single-engine, cabin-class, 4-place personal jet aircraft aimed at the general aviation pilot. Sport-Jet has been designed for single-person operation by a pilot trained in piston-powered airplanes. Many advanced features and a simplified design ease pilot workload. "We have confirmation from the largest GA insurance broker in the U.S. that our approach will contribute significantly to the insurability of the aircraft when operated by nonprofessionals," reported Bornhofen. "We wanted to provide the GA pilot with a superior performance cabin-class jet aircraft in a insurance-friendly platform."

Sport-Jet will sell for about $1 million, cruise at 340 knots at 25,000 feet (above 95% of all weather), and can carry four persons for more than 900 nautical miles in a surprisingly roomy cabin. More information is available at www.Sport-Jet.com.