COLORADO AIRCRAFT BUILDER ANTICIPATES START OF PRODUCTION

Bye Aerospace in Englewood, Colorado, founded and led by former Air Force pilot George E. Bye, has been developing all-electric aircraft since its founding in 2007. The company has three models in various stages of testing and development, with its two-place side-by-side eFlyer 2 model being the closest to certification and production. The purpose-built aircraft is undergoing FAA Part 23 certification in the normal category and is aiming straight for the primary training market, intending to replace the legacy Cessna 150 and 172 models.

The development prototype has been flying for about four years, and Bye expects to receive certification and begin production by the end of 2022. The trainer has a 3-hour flight endurance with FAA VFR reserve, a 230-nautical mile range and a whole-aircraft emergency parachute system. Since typical training flights last about 1 – 1.5 hours the eFlyer 2 appears well-positioned and suited for this market.

The company currently has orders booked for nearly 800 total units, about half of which are for the eFlyer 2 with the remainder split between the 4-seat advanced trainer eFlyer 4 and the twin-engine eFlyer 800. One of the challenges facing production plans may be the ready and reliable availability of parts as manufacturers are still recovering from the pandemic-induced shutdowns of 2020.