REMEMBER the Eclipse 500, the super-cheap "very light jet" made with NASA technology, that was going to do for air travel what the Ford Model T did for motoring? By now the skies were supposed to be buzzing with Eclipses, both privately owned ones and fleets of affordable "air taxis", bringing private aviation to the masses. Based on an earlier craft designed by the legendary Burt Rutan, the Eclipse was bankrolled by Bill Gates and the company that made it was run by a former Microsoft executive, Vern Raburn.
When we first reported on the plane, in 2006, we noted the scepticism of some pundits about its makers' hugely optimistic plans. The doubters were proven right: early production versions of the plane failed to live up to the advertised spec, angering buyers. Eclipse ceased operation in 2008, as did DayJet, a pioneering air-taxi operator, which had ordered hundreds of the small planes.
Source: http://www.economist.com/blogs/gulliver/2011/11/air-taxis?fsrc=rss
No comments:
Post a Comment