The Albuquerque, N.M.-based maker of very-light jets said Friday it will eliminate 650 jobs, about 38 percent of its nationwide work force. A company spokeswoman said the cutbacks in Colonie, where Eclipse employs 28, would be minimal but said the company isn't breaking down the job cut figure.
Earlier this week, Albany International Corp., which supplies parts for the six-passenger Eclipse 500 jet, reduced revenue projections for its Albany Engineered Composites unit, saying Eclipse would be cutting back on orders through the rest of this year and into early 2009. Eclipse at the time denied that any decision had been made about production cutbacks.
Eclipse has said it has delivered 245 of the $2.15 million jet aircraft, and that its backlog numbers 2,300 planes. The aircraft has faced increased scrutiny from regulators following troubles with its throttle controls, screen displays and other items. The Federal Aviation Administration has launched what it calls a special certification review, and Eclipse has said it will cooperate.
Eclipse has struggled financially, and its founder and CEO, Vern Raburn, stepped down July 28 as part of an investment by European Technology and Investment Research Center Aviation, which has the distribution rights for Eclipse jets in Europe and Russia. ETIRC's chairman, Roel Pieper, a former computer industry executive, became CEO and ETIRC has invested "substantially more" than $100 million in Eclipse.
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